Conduit
by Sith Lord Darth Revan
Summary: KOTOR/Mass Effect X-Over. The Citadel receives a new guest in the form of a Mysterious Stranger. One not limited by morality, political ambition or the restraints of Element Zero. New Chapter added 7/22/11
1. Prologue: Conduit

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN/ Summary: Takes during Mass Effect II. Crossover with Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. The Citadel receives a new guest in the form of a Mysterious Stranger. One not limited by morality, political ambition or the restraints of Element Zero. Takes place after the first Knights of the Old Republic Game.

Familiarity with both Knights of the Old Republic and Mass Effect games helps... but I'll try to make it unnecessary. As long as you know what Star Wars and Mass Effect are, you'll be fine... I hope.

Prologue: Conduit

A glowing crimson blade slashed through the dim lighting with a vibrant hum. The blade crossed with another of the same blood-red and an echoing grunt sounded as a heavy-soled leather boot struck a lightning-fast blow that sent the taller of the two combatants back. Beyond the two sentient combatants, dozens of bodies lay in various states of agony and death, limbs and body parts severed and punctured by the deadly edge of a lightsaber.

The millennia-old stone floor of the antechamber of the Sith Palace on Ziost echoed with the rapid footsteps of the two combatants as one fought for his very life and the other, for his soul. Pale, blue light filtered over the darkness of the stone walls, nearly reflecting from their obsidian faces. A hissing, higher in pitch than the sound of blade on blade sounded and the tallest figure staggered, his form shifting minutely and saving his life from the follow-through attack.

The shorter of the combatants stood at over two meters in height, his powerful frame compact, yet not lithe in the sense of a gymnast. His motions still held the grace of one who trained regularly and for years and in the face of the near-seven foot behemoth he dueled, he was the more deadly in terms of skill and focus.

The taller opponent, clad in an intricate set of black on black robes and armor drew his skill from instinct and rage instead of skill and discipline. Physically, he was overbearing, overwhelming and had his opponent been merely one of flesh and blood, he would have been invincible.

A spark and whine of a lightsaber crossing armored plates of Mandalorian metal echoed through the halls as the larger figure struck what would have been a fatal blow to his foe. The dull red of his foe's armor was charred briefly with a black scorch, an orange trail forming over the paint and boiling away the outer layer before it cooled rapidly and held against the lightsaber's deadly beam.

Words were not exchanged between the two, but a lifetime of knowledge was being passed from one to the other by the way they fought, the way they breathed and the way they moved. It told the story of the warrior's lives to any who could read the deadly arts, yet none remained within the walls of the True Sith's Palace to bear witness to the ruthless dialogue of war.

It was not a matter of morality that drew the two men to fight, but simply instinct. One stood at the head of an Empire, the survivor of a genocide and architect of a revenge plot a thousand years in the making while the other struggled with a mind damaged beyond recovery by treachery and abuse by those who deemed themselves his betters.

The man known to the galaxy as Darth Revan drew his blade in graceful, precise arcs; the variant form of Juyo fitting the chaotic state of the man's mind. Neither a servant of the Lightside of the Force, nor a slave to the Darkside; Revan relied on balance to dominate the battle while the Sith focused on the brute and primal energies of Darkness to fuel his stand.

The Force pulsed around the two combatants, shifting in a myriad of colors that would have confused any observer as Sith assaulted and Sith defended. The light was weakest here on this ancient and dark world and Revan did not cast his faith in weakness. He merely used the skills opened to him from a lifetime of study of the Force to defend himself against the violent Force-assaults the Sith Emperor threw against him.

Desperation had no place in this battle, it would have forced the battle along a simpler path and neither Revan, nor the Sith Emperor was foolish enough to do anything to compromise their forms. Risks were for the weak. The duel was like a deadly dance, the moves of the two so seamless they appeared almost choreographed. Ozone was thick in the air around the clashing crimson blades, weakening the Emperor as his armor lacked a breather.

The red and black mask hiding Revan's features from his foe hissed quietly as air was calmly drawn in and released, filtered through the Mandalorian mask's advanced system. A heads-up display gave a tactical view of the two-man battle in blue-tinged detail and readings of the environment around him. It saved Revan's life when a spike of ozone registered behind him. on the mask's scanners.

The Sith Warrior that approached the duel between the Emperor and Revan drew ahead warily, his breaths measured and his steps silent. Assassination was part of the Imperial Guard's training. What better way to avoid assassination than by knowing how an assassin thinks? The guard approached the duel, unseen by the masked assailant trying to murder his Emperor and he drew his lightsaber, holding the deadly device in a strike position before depressing the weapon's switch and lunging forward. The Emperor, seeing what was likely one of his few remaining guards moving to attack drew back, falling into a defensive pattern while Revan pressed his advantage before the ploy became apparent to all involved.

Muscles honed through rigorous and often violent training coiled and shifted with inhuman precision as Revan threw himself to the side, the crimson beam meant to skewer him finding only more air. A howl escaped the Sith as its arm was severed and Revan moved on, the danger passing as he and the Sith Emperor rejoined their battle. Dozens of wounded Sith lay on the polished floor of the palace, their eyes blazing in shades of gold and red as they stared balefully at the one responsible for their dismemberments. Their continued existence would be the reason Revan's gambit to destabilize the True Sith Empire and buy the Republic and Jedi Order time to rebuild would fail.

Overcoming their pain through sheer force of hateful will, the surviving guards gathered and prepared themselves for their revenge. Each reached within themselves for the Force that blackened their very souls and pushed their dark energies upon the battle, weakening one combatant while strengthening the other.

Power flowed through the Sith Emperor as his surviving guards gave their most sacred possession to their leader. It was an honor to the Emperor as much as it was an insult and he would have them all executed for their help once the battle was finished. They had seen he was too weak to overcome his foe and while they reacted with hatred for his enemy, they also saw his weakness and if that seed of doubt was planted within his followers, his Empire would collapse as other Sith would rise against him and challenge him for his status and power. Such was the fatal flaw of the Sith, the Emperor bemoaned as he gathered the energy needed for his last assault on the masked foe that had descended upon his home like a Force of nature to wreak havoc and destruction.

He could almost respect it; if it weren't directed his way and with a roar, the Sith Emperor unleashed his full might and that of the powers he'd taken from his guards against Revan. The antechamber the battle had progressed to was the oldest in the Sith Palace on Ziost, predating the Sith by nearly fifty-thousand years. The relic of the Infinite Empire that the Sith Empire claimed stood over the threshold of the doorway to the throne room, its shape reminiscent of the Star Forge that had once graced the sky above Lehon before Revan had led the Republic to victory against Darth Malak and sealed the Forge's fate.

Tapered at the separated tip, two parallel metal forks extended from a joined and curved base, the heart of the relic a dead circle with a magnetically locked ring. A spoil of war from a campaign fought by the Rakatans against an unnamed foe nearly fifty-thousand years before, the relic was the basis of much debate amongst Sith scholars and Masters. The device's use was merely decorative to the Sith, but the power it represented lived on in their people's memory as they sought to make an Empire as vast and powerful as the Rakatan's.

Blue-white tendrils of Darkside-infused energy danced across the body of the Sith Emperor as he pulled rapidly away from the duel. Revan pursued with vicious focus, lunging through the blast of Force-lightning and fortifying himself for the death-blow he planned to deal to the True Sith. Agony scalded Revan's body, tearing at his focus briefly before he pushed it aside with a roar and endured.

Eyes widening in shocked horror, the Sith Emperor focused the last of his strength into a point no greater than the size of his closed fist and forced it at his charging foe. The Force-push struck Revan with the Force of a speeder and launched the former Dark Lord of the Sith back and up as it exploded violently against his own weakened powers. A blaze of blue-white light engulfed Revan and the heads-up display of his helmet flickered and died when the dark fire of what remained of the Emperor's Force-lighting flowed over him. Revan had only enough time to register that the strange artifact was the source of the fire burning every molecule in his body before it pulsed violently and he was simply elsewhere.

Under water it turned out.

The Sith Emperor stared at the artifact glowing over the threshold of his throne room. The circular ring had spun when it came into contact with his Force-lightning attack, almost as if it has been jump-started temporarily. The sheer amount of Force-power it had taken had drained all the power granted to him by his guards and nearly all he had within him. His last desperate attempt to survive long enough to pull his blade in the path of Revan's had paid off and the energy that had ignited for only seconds within the heart of the device had consumed his enemy whole. Laughing in triumph, the Sith Emperor turned and walked to his throne, seating himself and staring at the large silver relic that lay over the entryway to the throne room.

The man that had assaulted him was known to the Sith and while he had been confident his forces could defeat the Republic and the Jedi... but... one man, one simple Jedi had infiltrated the Sith Empire and assaulted the Sith Palace and the Emperor himself and had nearly succeeded in the reckless but brilliant coup. Brilliant because it was so insane it was not expected. Drawing in a deep breath, the Emperor leaned back in his chair and decided a few more centuries of waiting might prove beneficial if the Sith expected to survive the next war with the Republic.

The Conduit that Saren Arterius had used to assault the Citadel during the Geth assault had been activated, if only briefly. Gathered on the walkway of the Presidium overlooking the Prothean artifact, dozens of C-Sec officers cordoned off the walkway as various civilians gathered to stare at the device with confused and wary excitement. The last time the small-scale Mass Relay had activated, Saren had nearly destroyed the Citadel and it's Council. Only the intervention of the Alliance and the first Human Spectre, John Shepard had safeguarded Citadel Space from the threat of the Geth.

"Contact, in the water!"

Captain Bailey of C-Sec glanced at the Turian officer that had spoke before following the alien's extended finger to the sight of a dark shape within the reservoir. Growling under his breath, Bailey ordered his men to ready their weapons, prepared for anything as the shape moved beneath the surface of the water, steadily working its way to the edge of the water, where a ladder was placed for such emergencies. What came out of the water almost caused several of the C-Sec officers to fire their weapons, though a quick shout from Bailey had them covering the new target. A mixture of C-Sec officers and civilians had gathered on the shore and the black and red figure that emerged from the lake stood perfectly still a moment as it pulled itself free from the reservoir.

Water dropped off an over two meter tall frame, boots and armor adding to its height. If Bailey could call it anything the first word that would come to mind was demon. The red of its armor stood out like blood while the black of its intricate robes, sodden with water looked darker than any void he'd ever seen. A tube was clenched in the figure's hand and shouts were thrown to the figure to drop the device. Checking his omni-tool, Bailey flinched at the energy readings coming from the inactive device. If it was a grenade or a bomb of some sort it would have packed the punch of a small tactical nuke. Whatever that thing's power source was, it was substantial and with a wary glance at the civilians gathered to watch the spectacle, Bailey approached with caution, hoping for a peaceful resolution while fully expecting to die in the near future.

"Get these people back! Now!"Bailey's shout brought an immediate response as dozens of C-Sec officers tried to lead the gathered gawkers away from the potential and if his luck was holding out likely threat. Pulling his sidearm free, Bailey approached the humanoid figure, his blue eyes focused on the slit in the visor covering the creature's face.

"I'm gonna need you to drop that weapon."

Bailey stated firmly, taking his place front and center of his gathered officers. Water leaked from the armor and robes of the figure, creating a transparent pool at his feet. A tilt of the head drew uneasy shifts from the gathered officers before the figure complied with the order, carefully setting the cylinder on the ground at his feet before drawing another similar device with a measured movement that was not too aggressive to draw gunfire from the gathered officers. A second tube joined the first before the armored figure took a step back from his weapons, his hands held out in a placating manner.

"I don't mean you any harm. These devices are weapons, but not explosives... unless mishandled. I suggest they be isolated and not tampered with by anyone but myself."The words were spoken in near-perfect and accented English. A hint of what sounded like a rough Australian accent from Earth was in the man's voice and his tone was flat, but cautionary. A quick check of his omni-tool told Bailey that the man was unarmed, but still shielded and armored. A glance at the walkway drew Bailey's attention to Councillor Anderson. The human representative to the Citadel Council was frowning down at the spectacle, his eyes switching between the mysterious newcomer and the form of the Conduit. Anderson believed Shepard's claims about the Reapers and from the reports; the Conduit was a simple back door to the Citadel that the Protheans on Ilos had made as a last-ditch attempt to prevent the Reapers from using the Citadel to bring back the Reaper fleet.

Shepard had succeeded over two years before and the Council had sent a Salarian Special Tasks Group to secure and remove the conduit from Ilos. They'd done so, but any information on the Reapers was lost with the end of the Virtual Intelligence Vigil, that had given the last of its processing power to aid Shepard in reaching the Conduit and stopping Saren.

_"What a Cluster-fuck."_

Anderson thought to himself, worriedly gazing at the strange being that had come through the Conduit. Was this some test by the Council? Unlikely, he'd have heard of it. A meddling scientist? Equally unlikely. If there were more Prothean Conduits, finding them was of the utmost importance. A backdoor into the Citadel for an invading force was too great a threat to ignore. Unlike some of the other threats facing the Council, this one was tangible and had been proven a threat by Saren's actions and Anderson shuddered as he considered who this newcomer was. An agent of the Reapers perhaps? A Prothean descendant from some long-lost colony?

From his vantage point on the walkway, Anderson watched as Bailey gave an order to the newcomer. The newcomer hesitated for a moment before drawing back the black hood covering his head. A full helmet covered the man's head and he removed it slowly, revealing something that left more questions than answers for the Councillor.

Dark brown hair, matted due to sweat from his duel with the Sith Emperor covered Revan's head and ended at his shoulders. A well-trimmed goatee of the same color marked by some stubble from several days spent trying to infiltrate the Sith's Capitol on Ziost instead of worrying about hygiene. Slightly tanned skin, pale and tight on the man's powerful but young features drew Anderson's eyes and he watched in silent surprise as the man rubbed at his face with a weary expression.

"I don't suppose anyone knows the way to Ziost?"

Bailey merely stared at Revan in silent when the man's deep, rough voice spoke. The confusion in their eyes was all the answer Revan needed and the former Jedi Knight and Dark Lord of the Sith cast a curious glance at several of the gathered alien species inhabiting the Presidium. A frown grew on Revan's face as he studied the Turian and Salarian C-Sec officers before his eyes caught sight of an Asari in the distance and his brow pinched together to join the confused expression growing on his face.

"Coruscant?"Revan asked hopefully, his eyes locking with Bailey's before he shook his head with a grunt of annoyance.

"Bloody fantastic!"Allowing the C-Sec officers to put him in restraints, Revan was led towards C-Sec Academy and placed in an interrogation room while Anderson activated his own omni-tool and asked for an emergency audience with his fellow Council Members. The Conduit was a threat to them and they needed info on the newcomer ASAP.


	2. Chapter 1: Insight

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: The necessary summary for Revan's characterization. Oh, and Chapter 1.

Chapter 1: Insight

The first thing a Mandalorian child is taught outside of the simplistic basics of infant and toddler survival is to respect the power of an unknown foe. The teachings are so ingrained into the minds and bodies of Mandalorian-raised children that it becomes a kind of instinct as their lives progress and they near adulthood… the age of thirteen for most humanoid sentience. Beyond the obvious wisdom of such teachings lays a unique philosophy. Mandalorians are taught to respect what they fight, taught to understand each motion and breath of a foe. To know the heart of your enemy is to know the face of war. All taught in the ways of the warriors knows an enemy is an obstacle to overcome. Not all obstacles are physical and just as much respect comes from mental prowess as physical.

Perfection of survival is the Mandalorian way. The perfect warrior is one who not only can overcome any foe or environment, but also one that understands the ways of the unknown. One who understands that there is always more to learn and that a reckless gambit into the heart of an unknown is as foolish as it is doomed. Mandalorians make war because they understand their foes… and find them lacking in honor.

Revan Qel-Droma of the Mandalorian Clan Bloodraven was a follower of _Resol'Nare, _the heart of Mandalorian Law. The law was simple and it was to be absolutely respected by all bearing the name _Mando'ade _or "Children of Mandalore."

_Ba'jur, beskar'gam,(Education and armor)_

_Ara'nov, alit, (Self-defense, our tribe)_

_Mando'a bal Mand'alor, (Our language, our leader)_

_An vencuyan mhi. (All help us survive)_

Revan was fathered by the Dark Jedi Ulic Qel-Droma and carried by a half-breed Taung warrior who's name was lost when the man was but a _adiik. (Child between 3 and 13 years.) _Trained by the Clans until his recruitment into the Jedi Order at the age of ten, Revan was near his trial for adulthood when his path took him to the Republic and its greatest warriors, the Jedi Knights.

From there, Revan trained as a Jedi warrior and learned their ways. The boy had even begun to respect the Jedi's Spartan lifestyle and even their disciplined and peaceful ways when his trials as a Jedi Knight were completed and he was free to return to his people with the gained knowledge of the Jedi Order's ways.

Then Cathar happened. At the behest of Mandalore the Ultimate, the Mandalorian Clans descended upon the Cathar people and under the warlord Cassus Fett's guidance were utterly destroyed. It was a crime beyond the scope of cruelty. Every man, woman and child of that world that did not die in the fighting or were fortunate enough to escape were driven by the pursuing warriors and their war-machines into the oceans and there, they were boiled alive by the fires of Mandalorian weapons.

It was an act of revenge for the Cathar's part in the Mandalorian's earlier defeat by Republic and Jedi Forces in Exar Kun's Great Sith War. To those who saw beyond the glory to be gained in the war the Mandalorians were provoking the Republic into fighting, it was a crime done by an entire race of once-honorable warriors who had forgotten the point behind their laws and embraced a simpler, crueler doctrine. That of revenge and slaughter. The Mandalorians had lost their honor and became _dar'manda._ (One who has lost identity, soul or heritage.)

As a Mandalorian following the code of his people, Revan was compelled to fight a war with his own kind. The result was not favorable for either side as it led to the Jedi General's return to the Republic as a Sith Lord and the utter destruction of the Mandalorian people over Malachor V.

As Darth Revan was escorted to C-Sec Academy for processing, his eyes scanned the various sentient beings around him. Humans were easy to spot, but other species unknown to the former Jedi General as he was led to an elevator and pushed to the back. Four C-Sec guards, two human, a Turian and a Salarian were keeping him under guard while the lift began its slow ascent. Music of some sort played in the background and Revan cast a glance towards the speaker within the lift, his mind filing away the wealth of unfamiliar, yet easily recognizable technology. Being a trained Jedi Knight and Mandalorian warrior; Revan was a patient man and so when the lift finally did reach where he was to be processed by C-Sec, he only wanted to maim whoever designed the blasted device, not kill.

Mandalorians made their own armor and weapons once they had proven themselves as adults and while Revan had never officially undergone the trials for adulthood within the Clans, his JedI trials were an acceptable alternative as it was so closely related to a religion and the Clans accepted all religions and species so long as they did not detract from the Mandalorian ways.

Armor is not all there is to a warrior. The old saying was not only restricted to a warrior's prowess and most Mandalorian suits of battle armor were equipped with powerful energy shields, stealth field generators and a vast assortment of concealed and deadly weaponry as well as various useful survival implements for climbing, strength enhancement and survival in vacuum or against chemical weaponry. Mandalorians as a rule also had advanced nanites injected into their bloodstreams as children. The microscopic machines each housed a near-sentient droid that boosted the recipient's stamina, health and their ability to heal from otherwise life-threatening injuries. Machines, especially sentient ones were part of the Mandalorian's life. Basilisk War Droids were sentient as well and programmed to be loyal to their chosen riders for the course of each of their lives. It was part of what had made the Mandalorian war mounts such a terror and so effective at killing.

By Citadel standards, the nanites within Revan's body could qualify as semi-sentient and therefore a violation of the AI research restrictions. Since Revan was one quarter Taung, he would also not appear to be entirely human once C-Sec took the time to scan him. Of course, their scanners would have trouble piercing his armor as it was designed to fool the Republic's much more advanced scanners.

Walking through the clean and polished hallways of the Citadel, Revan tried to gather his thoughts as he was guided to a processing room with two long white tables in the center of the room and an Asari C-Sec officer eyeing a data pad with a frown on her blue face. The Asari glanced up at the entrance of Revan and his guard entourage and nodded to her fellow officers before approaching Revan and raising her left arm. With her right, the Asari began typing in a sequence in mid-air before her Omni-tool appeared and Revan rose a brow beneath his mask at the holographic keyboard. The technology wasn't unheard of to him, but it was unusual to see it being used in conjunction with a wrist-mounted scanner. A few key tones from the holographic Omni-tool removed Revan's restraints and the manacles dropped to the deck as Revan rubbed his wrists wearily.

"Please remove your armor, sir."

Revan merely nodded and began shedding his armor slowly, careful to keep the seals and hidden weaponry intact. Each piece of his armor would need extra care after the unscheduled dip he'd taken in the Presidium lake before it was up to a straight battle. The same could be said of his light sabers. The deadly weapons were not tuned to function in water and Revan was in no position to have a battle against projectile-wielding unknowns after his exhausting battle with the True Sith Emperor. Recovery would take time and cooperating with the mixed-species law enforcement of wherever the Hell he'd ended up was his only option. The Mandalorian part of Revan surmised that it would also be useful to know his potential enemy while the JedI side reasoned it was wise to pursue a peaceful outcome to his current situation.

"I'm going to need you to remove your Omni-tool as well, sir."

Free of his armor, Revan merely stared at the Asari in confusion, his brow furrowing as his eyes narrowed at the blue-skinned alien. What the Hell was an Omni-tool? Revan felt a hand grasp his arm roughly and pull him back. Out of sheer instinct, Revan shifted his wrist, driving his elbow into the sternum of whoever had grabbed him. The result was an out of breath and incapacitated human C-Sec officer. Pain blossomed in Revan as a flash overcame his vision. Staggering forward, Revan turned to see a Turian with a rifle stock raised. The expression on the Turian's mandibled features was difficult to read, but surprise echoed in the air around the saurian alien as Revan shifted his full attention to his assailant and sneered.

"Was that entirely necessary?"

Revan kept his voice controlled, though the rage was clear in his eyes. A flicker of golden light crossed the former Jedi Knight's brown irises and the Turian stared at the shift of the man's eye-color, uncertain of whether he'd seen it or not. A clearing of a throat drew both men's gazes to the Asari as she nodded to the communicator strapped to Revan's left wrist.

"Your Omni-tool, sir. I saw that your response was merely a reaction and I am sure Officer Donovan will not add charges as he should have informed you before beginning a search. Please remove the device on your wrist as well as any metal-plated clothing or objects on your person."

The Asari's blue eyes were calm in the face of the violence within the processing room and Revan stared into the alien woman's eyes briefly before conceding with a nod. The wrist-communicator joined his armor before he began undoing the leather straps that had held his armor in place.

Water-logged Jedi robes and a cloak joined his armor and communicator before Revan lowered himself to the ground and began removing his boots and then his gloves. A black, form-fitting unisuit covered Revan's body and he reached up and undid the atmospheric seal at his neck, the advanced pressure suit joining his other possessions on the table.

Nude, Revan spread his arms and legs, staring impassively into the Asari's face as she gave him a brief once-over and turned her attention to her Omni-tool. A small line passed over the alien's smooth blue features as she checked and double-checked her readings.

"That's strange…"

Glancing up from her Omni-tool, the Asari gave Revan's eyes a hard, searching stare before she lowered her scanner and crossed her arms with a frown, her lips pouting slightly in her confusion.

"Dehlan, make a log to the Council. Subject is not entirely… organic or human… Scanners"

Shaking her head, the Asari officer motioned Revan to a shower stall and gestured to a pile of gray and orange prison clothing. No explanation was necessary and Revan merely walked past the officer, stone-faced and began cleaning himself off within the shower stall. The room behind Revan was silent in the wake of the scanner's results and Revan took his time enjoying the shower, his mind trying to catch up to the situation he was in while his body fought off the exhaustion his duel brought on.

"Sir?"

Revan started from his musings, turning to see the Asari officer's impassive features. While the blue-skinned alien appeared in her mid twenties by human standards, Revan could sense an old soul within the woman's eyes and was unsurprised by her neutral handling of the situation. Not that he had anything to hide.

Senior C-Sec Officer Shari'a tried to keep a neutral expression as the extremely well-built prisoner turned and accepted the towel she offered him. Drying himself off in what could only be described as a military fashion, the Asari caught sight of the strange skull-shaped tattoo of an unrecognizable beast on the man's powerful bicep. Despite the man's lack of weapons and armor, she knew from her scans how dangerous he was.

Violence was written upon each vein, each muscle within the man's toned and built frame. His height would do nothing to hamper his speed, she knew and despite the evident wear and exhaustion her scans had shown her, the scarring was evidence of what Revan could survive. Vicious and jagged marks marred the man's abdomen and back from blades, shrapnel while what looked like painful, deliberate burns that could only come from a superheated object touching vulnerable human-like flesh marred the slightly tanned pale flesh of her charge. Not knowing of blasters and light sabers, the weapons were unidentifiable to the Asari Matron and she forced herself to remember the being's origins and what else her scanner had picked up.

Millions of microscopic devices flowed through the man's bloodstream and a complete lack of immunization against common diseases as well as a variation within the subject's genome warned of genetic engineering and experimentation. A complete lack of Element Zero was curious, as was a lack of implants beyond the tiny machines within the man's bloodstream, but she knew what the flashing indicator on her Omni-tool had indicated as well as its implications.

The creature before her could only be the result of some sick experiment in gene therapy, cross-species bio-engineering and machine sentience. A Geth experiment, perhaps a relic of the rouge Spectre Saren's research into fields forbidden by the Council. For all she knew he could be a Geth cyborg of some kind designed for infiltration. It wouldn't explain the mark on the man, but it would explain the various injuries her scans had found.

Perhaps more troubling than the near-intelligent nanites and the wounds and genetic drift from the entirely human was the genetic decay telling of a man in his late twenties, perhaps early thirties. His human-dominant genetic materials predated the First Contact War and perhaps even human discovery of Mass Relays. It was improbable that the Geth would take an interest in the distant human homeworld and abduct humans or harvest human genetic materials only to place them in a manufactured super soldier before they even left their home system. The impossibility of the scenario and the complete lack of logic left more questions to his origins.

"Who- What are you?"

Shari'a finally asked once the man had finished drying himself off and dressed in the prison uniform. Kneeling on the ground as he pulled on his boots, Revan cast a quick glance up at the officer observing his actions and rubbed his nose as a foreign scent invaded his senses. It was dry, though not unpleasant and resembled a flower patch he'd been trudging through once on Dantooine as a teen. A quick and discreet whiff of the air told Revan it was coming from the Asari and her shrugged as he stood at his full height, offering a small smirk as he responded.

"A bastard if you ask my wife and utterly incorrigible if you asked my master."

Genuine surprise crossed Officer Shari'a's features as she stared at Revan incredulously. Three centuries as a C-Sec officer had given the Asari Matron insight into body language and certain tells when a sentient was lying. The body language of her charge was relaxed for the most part, though the edge to his posture remained, indicating his readiness for battle if it should come. Unless the man was a fantastic lair, he really did have both a wife and a master.

"You were a slave?"

The hard expression that crossed the man's face was one she'd seen hundreds of times in regards to humans when asked about slavery. The utter abhorrence humans viewed slavery and even its legal and distant cousin of Indentured Servitude was present for only a moment before it cleared.

"I was…"

A slave to who remained unsaid, though Revan knew the JedI Council's decision to mind wipe and reconstruct a false identity within his body was necessary for the Order's survival in the face of Darth Malak and the power of the Star Forge, he also knew it was slavery in its most brutal form. Forcing away his true identity and creating a programmable tool that would respond how they wanted it to respond was murder and slavery in his mind and a black, cold rage churned in the former Jedi's gut as he was led to an interrogation room.

"I- I need to know something before we start, sir."Revan glanced at the Asari silently, trying to gauge the reason behind the hesitance within the woman's question before merely brushing it off. She was a member of the law enforcement agency that saw fit to imprison and interrogate him and while he may not like the treatment he'd been given thus far, they'd been near-civil in their handling of the situation and with the Force as well as his training he was never defenseless. Should the situation demand it, he could easily escape and elude capture once he had a bearing on his location and the state of the region of space he found himself in.

"You're the officer here and I the prisoner, go ahead. I'd just like to know my rights at some point in this charmingly fascist display of a military state."

Flinching at the snide, cutting tone of the man as well as the lack of legal niceties, Shari'a glanced back at her supporting officers as they kept a wary eye on her charge.

"You have no idea what this is do you?"Shari'a finally asked, seeing the total lack of unease within the Mysterious Stranger. A cold, cruel smirk flickered across Revan's lips before it vanished.

"I suppose I am being led to a quiet and isolated place where I can be aggressively interrogated as to how I came to be here, who I am and what my purpose is. This will all likely be followed by one of two things. A lengthy legal procedure and my release or a single shot to the head. Am I about right, officer?"

Sighing, Shari'a did nothing to deny any of Revan's claims as she cast a glance at the man before punching in her code to unlock the interrogation room.

"You were in possession of weapons in a restricted area. You appeared from Conduit with no identity logged within the Citadel's database and not only a deadly and powerful explosive, but also illegal technology. The… machines within your body violate the sanctions in Citadel Space against Artificial Intelligence research and while you can be cleared of the other charges if you do not turn out to be a Geth spy or saboteur, the very presence of such machines within you is enough to land you life imprisonment... Or worse."

Revan's features remained unchanged throughout the explanation and he stood still in silence as he considered his options. He still needed time to recover from the exhaustion brought on by his battle with the Sith Emperor as well as the event that had brought him to this strange space station. Cooperation would be wise for the time being and reluctantly, Revan entered the room and took a seat, allowing his arms and legs to be restrained while he stared vacantly at the two-way mirror in clear view along the side of the wall he was forced to face.

Time passed slowly as Revan relaxed his body in its restrained and uncomfortable position. A waking meditation was all that was needed to regain some of his exhausted strength and the three hours C-Sec kept his locked in the interrogation room and under close observation to catalogue his reactions was enough to give Revan some of his old strength back. Not refreshed, but in a much better position if combat were needed to escape, Revan mentally debated his situation.

The unknown but civilized aliens were unsettling as was the lack of knowledge of Coruscant and Ziost. The language sounded the same as Galactic Basic, but something was off about it all. Translators maybe, Revan shook his head to clear it when the door to his interrogation room opened and a human in a well-tailored suit. The man was in his late fifties and dark-skinned, but his steps carried the knowledge of battle and Revan straightened unconsciously.

"We need to know what you know about the Reapers…"

Councilor David Anderson watched the man carefully as he pondered his situation. It didn't take long for the man to respond, but Anderson caught the subtle shift of the man at his entrance, as if he felt threatened over the situation. Rightly so, since he'd had to practically run to the interrogation room after he found out the Council was just going to process and imprison the man for illegal AI tech without even consulting legal council… or the Human Embassy since the man's DNA was not entirely human.

"I don't know anything about the Reapers, sir. I do know that in most galactic civilizations the treatment I've received since falling through that damned oversized tuning fork would be classified as illegal. Were it not for the conscience of one of your officers I wouldn't even know what I am likely being charged with."

Disgusted, Revan couldn't keep the sneer from his lips as he clenched his hands and tested his restraints experimentally. An alarm sounded a warning tone and Anderson took a step back while the door to the interrogation room opened and Bailey entered with his pistol drawn.

"I'm going to have to ask you to stop that, son."Bailey's rough voice cut in, cold and flat with the very real threat of violence should the human representative of the Council he harmed under his watch. Revan ceased his brief struggle, lying back and giving the two humans a hard stare.

"My armor and weapons will tell you who I am. My mask has a data recorder with… years of information stored within its data stores. Once you've reviewed that information, I'll answer your questions."

Without another word, Revan turned his head away and stared at the two-way mirror blankly. Ten minutes of unanswered questions from Anderson and a few brutal punches from Bailey when he did not so much as grunt a response was all it took to drain both men of their patience.

"Leave him to the Council, then."

Anderson sighed, knowing he wouldn't get any information about the Reapers or anything if they continued to question the Mysterious Stranger. Following him outside of the interrogation room with a disgusted look on his face, Bailey rubbed his sore hand from the blows he'd given the prisoner and grunted his response to the human Council member.

"Council's deemed him too dangerous to live after the results of Shari'a's scans. They're sending one of their pets down to dispose of him."

As if on cue, a black-clad Turian stalked past the two towards the interrogation room, a flame-thrower in his hands as he prepared to incinerate the uninvited guest, nanites and all. It was too dangerous to risk the microscopic machines activating some failsafe after the man was killed and despite the brutality of it all, the Spectre knew his orders and had long-since convinced himself his duty was more important than his morality.

Revan sensed the killing intent of the black-clad Turian Spectre that entered his cell and rose a brow impassively at the flamethrower pointed in his direction as the doors to the interrogation room sealed.

"Do you feel that?"

Revan's voice was barely a whisper as his fingers curled slightly within their restraints. Confusion crossed the Spectre's avian features before he merely stood still, neither advancing or responding as his body and the implants within him failed to respond. Even his advanced biotics refused to react as suddenly the restraints holding the near-human down fell away and the man stood with an easy grace that the Spectre recognized from a well-trained fighter.

"You can't breathe… you can't move, you can't even think or speak. I have been nothing but accommodating to you fools and in return you assault me and chose to murder me in a most vile way when you have yet to even ask me my **name**?"

Rage colored Revan's eyes with a golden light as he moved casually to the unresponsive Turian and eyed the alien with a disgusted expression.

"Far deadlier foes than you have tried to murder me."

A quick and precise blow to the side of the head knocked the Turian from the unrelenting hold Revan's Force-powers kept him in and he fell to the deck, unconscious before he hit the ground. An alarm immediately sounded and gas flooded the room while Revan knelt beside the Turian and relieved the Spectre of his HMWP Mark X sidearm before a wave of his hand collapsed the near-unbreakable material of the two-way mirror. Startled Council observers raised their hands in surrender as Revan trained his stolen pistol on them before the former Dark Lord of the Sith made another subtle gesture with his hand and they were all thrown about the room and into the thick and unmoving bulkheads, all falling unconscious at Revan's feet.

Smirking slightly at the chaos unfolding around him, Revan quickly grabbed one of the unconscious C-Sec officer's Omni-tools that happened to hold the security clearance overrides for most of the doors within C-Sec Academy and made his way quickly to where his armor and hopefully his light sabers were being kept.

The approach of a squad of heavily armed and shielded C-Sec enforcers quickly tossed that plan out the airlock and Revan was forced to backtrack and toss the Omni-tool when he realized a tracking device was encoded within the wrist-mounted tool. Shedding the orange jumpsuit of his prison clothes, Revan ducked into a locker room, quickly subduing the three startled human C-Sec officers within and relieving one of the lockers of its contents.

Using the Force, Revan masked his presence from scanners and moved from the lockers, bypassing the frantic C-Sec patrols and making a break for a series of air ducts that looked to be a promising escape route.

Through skills gained as a Jedi Knight, Revan was able to make a break for the docking bays attached to C-Sec Academy and the former General quietly stole away on a small, aged shuttle as it crept from the docking bay.

Within C-Sec Academy, Captain Bailey was shouting orders into his Omni-tool as he entered the interrogation room and checked to see if the Council Spectre and their observers were still alive. Strangely enough, the fugitive had not killed anyone, simply incapacitated them and moved on. The sheer efficiency and expedience of Revan's escape was almost unbelievable and Anderson cautiously entered the interrogation room with a wary expression on his weathered features.

"Goddamnit! Get the elevators locked down, put up kinetic barriers in all the air vents and get me a damned line to those Navy pukes. Tell'em to shoot down anyone failing to respond to a search of their craft. Stop all outbound flights, I repeat stop all outbound-"

Anderson drew himself away from Bailey's shouts to simply take in the destruction a single man had brought upon the interrogation room.

"The Council is going to need to see everything you got from this man."

Anderson finally stated as he approached Bailey and helped to shift the unconscious Council observers to more comfortable positions while they awaited a medical team. Bailey cast a quick glance to Anderson and nodded grimly as he moved to the command and control center for C-Sec Academy to oversee the logistical nightmare unfolding around them.

Thousands of light-years away, within a sizeable space station that only a handful of beings within the galaxy knew about, a man in his early sixties watched the feed of Revan's escape through twin ocular implants. Moving his left hand to a console on the side of the chair he rested in, the Illusive Man brought up the results from Officer Shari'a's scans of Revan. Taking a quick drag of his cigarette, the head of Cerberus set a quick text-only message to his asset within C-Sec Academy. In the chaos unfolding with Revan's escape and the subsequent search of the tens of thousands of shuttles and starships within the Citadel's crowded search-zones, no one realized the disappearance of the cause of the chaos' possessions until it was too late. By that time, C-Sec suspected the supposed fugitive and not the terrorist pro-human organization was responsible for the missing items.


	3. Chapter 2: Pilgrim

Disclaimer: I own nothing

AN: Just who's shuttle did Revan decide to hijack?

Chapter 2: Pilgrim

Lia'Vael nar Ulnay had never been more terrified in her life than she was at this very moment. Her Pilgrimage hadn't gone exactly as planned since coming to the Citadel and while she had known the traditional Quarian rite of adulthood would be difficult, she had no idea it would be such a trial. Not only had her plans to purchase a ship to bring back to the Migrant Fleet failed when she had found out there was no work on the Citadel for Quarians, but she had also been in the process of selling her shuttle just to pay off the ridiculous docking fees C-Sec had placed upon her or face immediate imprisonment and impounding.

Honestly her heart had nearly stopped when the human C-Sec Officer had appeared. The blank look on the man's face as well as the pistol in his hand when he'd approached her had nearly taken all of her hope away. When he'd given her instructions to get inside of the old shuttle that had been given to her for her pilgrimage by the crew of the Ulnay, her normally quick mind had failed to process his request. It was only when they'd pulled away from the Citadel that she realized the man was merely dressed as a C-Sec Officer and that she had become a hostage to a fugitive on the run.

"What is your name?"Starting slightly, Lia cast a quick, furtive glance at the man who'd hijacked her shuttle and strangely enough become a part of her Pilgrimage. She was weaponless since C-Sec had chosen to confiscate them for her stay on the Citadel and a glance at the pistol in Revan's right hand as well as his professional and familiar grip told her that path was hopeless as well. Her opponent had size and likely speed and strength on her without a weapon and despite her skills with an Omni-tool, she knew the pistol the man held was one of the best in the galaxy. An HMWP Mark X from the Citadel's Spectre Armory. Knowing that the only way one could obtain such a weapon was either from a dead or incapacitated Spectre or by being a Spectre themselves, Lia chose to bide her time and not provoke an assault from the dangerous man.

"L- Lia'Vael nar Ulnay…"

Cursing herself for not being able to hide the quaver in her voice, Lia shifted uneasily as she keyed in random, unnecessary sequences into the shuttle's controls.

"_I'm going to die, oh Keelah, I'm going to die!"_

Noticing the Quarian's discomfort, Revan glanced down at the sidearm in his hand before placing it on a magnetic holster attached to the belt he'd liberated from C-Sec. Shifting in the slightly too-small clothing, Revan considered the name the masked and enviro-suited alien have given him before deciding the last part of her name was a title and not actually her name itself.

"Well Miss Vael, my name is Revan Qel-Droma. Its fair to let you know I am a fugitive from that bloody place and that, I'm afraid to say; I have absolutely no idea where I am in the universe, what species you or any of the others were aside from the humans and that I am at a bit of an impasse as to what I am supposed to bloody do here."

The man was speaking very much like a human and aside from some discoloration in his eyes, Lia would have been hard pressed to tell him apart from any human. It was the feline glow in his eyes as he grew frustrated that made her doubt he was human. That golden flash was just unnatural and it spoke to a very primal part of her that having those eyes focused on her with killing intent would not be wise.

"I- what- what do you mean?"

Honest confusion flooded Lia as she watched the supposed human pulling at the too-tight collar of his C-Sec uniform. Catching the man's gaze directly, Lia shifted uneasily when two dark brown eyes, bloodshot and nearly as dark as the void before her stared her down.

"I am one quarter Taung… or Mandalorian if you prefer and three quarters human. Until several hours ago I was on the Sith world of Ziost battling their Emperor and his guards when I was… assaulted by some type of Dark Energy and thrown into a blasted oversized- well… Undersized one of those."

Revan gestured to the Mass Relay the shuttle was approaching and frowned as he took in the scope of the device left behind presumably by the Protheans. Not having been given a destination, Lia frantically checked the scanners and saw that the Council was creating a blockade with its fleet back at the Citadel while swarms of smaller frigates and fighters moved to intercept what ships they could that hadn't already escaped the system-wide lockdown that was just that moment coming into effect.

"Oh Keelah, they're locking down the Mass Relay! They- they're going to arrest me, I just know it!"

Revan rose a brow at the panic echoing around the girl he'd been forced to abduct and he sighed mentally as he glanced back at the controls of the shuttle, wishing he was familiar enough with them that he hadn't needed to bring the Quarian along.

"I am sorry about this, Miss Vael, but they were going to execute me with a blasted flame thrower over some AI nonsense and seeing as how I am both unfamiliar with their laws and… not from around here obviously, I find that sentence most disagreeable. Especially when they hadn't even bothered to ask me my name or offer me a trial."

Lia had heard what the man had said, but her mind was stuck on the AI part of his statement and it took her a few tense moments to respond. When she did, she couldn't keep the anger from her voice.

"You- you created an AI? Do you have any idea how dangerous that is! Do you have any idea what the Geth did to my people!"Revan grunted in annoyance, unable to mask his emotions after the events of the last few hours. Unconsciously touching his pistol as he brushed his hands by his hips, Revan could not help but snarl as Lia jumped in fear at the gesture.

"That is just it, Miss Vael! I **don't** know what the Geth are, I don't you who your people are and I most certainly don't know why AI research is such a bloody dastardly crime that it requires burning a man alive who did nothing but cooperate!"

Cowering in the face of Revan's anger as he shouted within the close confines of the shuttle, Lia desperately grasped for a place to send her transport. As much as she wished to stay and be rid of the raving lunatic who'd kidnapped her, she would probably be gunned down by the Citadel Fleet's cannons just for having him on her ship. Quarians were not placed in high regard because of their hand in creating the synthetic and unintentionally intelligent Geth and to have someone the Council was willing to execute brutally without even the premise of a trial… it did not bode well for her continued survival.

"Get this bloody thing out of here, where is the blasted hyper drive?"

Revan had abandoned all pretense of calm in the face of exhaustion and anger and was typing at the controls of the shuttle viciously, his expression turning darker by the second. Terrified and knowing that her only hope of survival lay in cooperation for the time being, Lia quickly entered the coordinates for a jump to Omega before beginning an approach to the Citadel's Mass Relay.

Ceasing his assault on the unfamiliar controls of the transport, Revan cautiously glanced at the Mass Relay as it steadily grew larger within the viewport of the shuttle. Glancing at Lia's resigned posture and sensing her fear, Revan grew uneasy as he wondered if he'd driven the poor girl to sending them on a collision course for the odd space station before a tendril of energy arced from the Mass Relay and took hold of the Mass Effect field of the small shuttle. A cool sensation washed over Revan, temporarily overwhelming his senses with an incomprehensible myriad of lights and sounds before the shuttle was flung from one section of the galaxy to another within an instant.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me! Was that a bloody mass accelerator?"Glancing at the new set of stars as well as a similar but entirely different Mass Relay, Revan tried to wrap his mind around the primitive FTL he'd just been subjected to and its similarity to the device the Sith Emperor had thrown him in. The sensation was similar, though muted by the shuttle and Revan placed his left hand over his mouth as a lurch took over the shuttle and Lia guided it quickly into the next Mass Relay.

"We have to keep jumping or C-Sec may be able to track us…"

Not knowing why she'd offered the explanation, Lia quickly entered the Mass Relay, letting the familiar and calming sensation of the Mass Effect field wash over her as her shuttle and subsequently everything inside of it were accelerated well beyond the speed of light. "Ah… that's… good."

Hearing the strained note in her abductor's voice, Lia cast a glance towards the man as he kept a hand over his mouth, his jaw clenching as he fought off the nausea associated with Mass Relay jumps. Having a moment to think with Revan temporarily incapacitated by the foreign sensations associated with Mass Effect fields, Lia was surprised to realize that aside from being taken as a hostage, Revan had been the most polite person she'd dealt with since leaving the Migrant Fleet.

"So, what species are you?"

Revan managed to ask, sitting down heavily into the copilot seat of the small salvaged Quarian shuttle. The former Jedi Knight and General had paled significantly since the first Mass Relay jump and Lia frowned beneath her mask. That wasn't normal for someone used to Relay jumps. Something was definitely off about the man and the Quarian youth hesitantly answered his questions.

"You- you're serious?"

Lia mentally cried as she realized she was stuck with a complete psychopath. The worse kind to. The C-Sec uniform and the Spectre's sidearm were clear signs that regardless of the man's state of mind, he was deadly and capable.

"_Keelah, how did this even happen?"_

Revan glanced at the Quarian youth with a sour expression on his face before waving his hand and causing his sidearm to float from its holster to his hand. Of course, the effect only caused Lia more distress when she surmised she was dealing with not only a madman, but a biotic madman as well. A keening wail began to form in Lia's throat and work its way through the auto receptor of her mask, causing the light at its base to flicker as she cowered in the pilot's seat.

"Please! I just wanted to bring a ship back to the Migrant Fleet! I wasn't going to do anything wrong, I swear! Oh Keelah, please don't let this be happening!"

Rolling his eyes, Revan absently spun the pistol in the air with his Force-powers as he tapped a finger on the console before him. Spotting a monitor with some information, Revan narrowed his eyes, disgusted when he realized he couldn't even read the alien symbols. The translators worked well enough for speech, but text was something he'd have to learn himself. Luckily Revan was a master linguist and while it would take time, the former Jedi Knight and Sith Lord was certain he could decipher the symbol's meanings.

"Calm yourself, Lia'Vael nar Ulnay. I mean you no harm."

Sending a reassuring wave of calming Force-energy at the young Quarian, Revan took the pistol in his hand and held it out to the girl, the barrel facing him. Words alone weren't going to calm the girl. With a speed Revan wasn't expecting, the Quarian took the pistol and turned it on him, all panic and hysteria gone.

"Do not say anything you Bosh'tet! As if my Pilgrimage could not get any worse, now I am a fugitive from the Citadel as well because of you!"

Revan rose a brow slightly at how steadily the girl was holding the pistol and could not help the appreciative smirk that crossed his lips. His respect for the Quarian had just gone up significantly. An almost invisible motion caused the pistol's heatsink and ammo-block to fall out, startling Lia as she scrambled to catch the vital components as they fell.

Before her eyes, the objects ceased their descent in the shuttle's limited gravity and floated back together. Revan, waved a finger and smirked at the shock coming from the girl. While Lia's knowledge of biotics was limited due to her childhood in the sterile environment of the Flotilla, she knew such precise manipulations were not possible. Except perhaps by an Asari Matriarch and then only after centuries of experience.

"Now I'm going to keep my voice in this tone so the full ramifications of what I say will properly sink in. I am from another galaxy. I was forcibly shoved through a miniature version of whatever you used to get this shuttle to go Faster-than-light. Whatever else you may think, I have absolutely no desire to harm you… quite the contrary, I very desperately could use your help."

The words of her mother echoed in Lia'Vael nar Ulnay's mind at the calming tone coming from the human and for the first time since the entire nightmare began, Lia began to believe the man's previous if ineloquent claims. The sheer power her abductor held and the ease with which he used it caused Lia to lower the pistol, though she held it in her three-digit grasp more firmly than was necessary.

"You're telling the truth?"

Revan gazed directly into Lia's mask, locking his eyes with the two glowing orbs visible through the faceplate. A subtle nod was all it took before Lia heaved a heavy sigh and gave a humorless laugh.

"The- my mother told me that the Pilgrimage is not just about bringing something of use back to the Flotilla, but also proving that we are willing to give of ourselves for the greater good… If- if what you claim is true than I- I can still continue my Pilgrimage… I only need to help you."

It was more than Revan could have hoped for and the warmest reception he'd been given since leaving the Republic years before to pursue the threat of the True Sith. A depressing thought, Revan reflected as he relaxed back into his seat. Through the Force he could sense the sincerity in Lia's voice and Revan offered his own pledge to the Quarian youth.

"Lia'Vael nar Ulnay. You will most definitely not regret that decision."

The Quarians had made a friend of Darth Revan that day by being the only ones willing to listen to his fantastic claims and while it was only one of seventeen million Quarians that had pledged her aid, it was enough to favor the entire species in Revan's eyes after his dealings on the Citadel.

Huffing humorlessly, Revan gestured to the small monitor before him that was imbedded within the control console of the transport.

"If you were to turn off whatever is translating my speech, you might find yourself assaulted by a language you've never heard before. I am sorry to say it, but I cannot even read your language at this point."

Lia smiled slightly beneath her mask, seeing Revan's discomfort over such a thing and she set down the Spectre pistol Revan had freely handed to her. Shifting in her seat, Lia reached down into her field-pack that she had been previously transferring her possessions to in the wake of the impending impounding or sale of the transport back on the Citadel and pulled a small data pad from its depths.

The Codex was outdated by a couple of decades, but still held the general information Revan would need to assimilate to be able to blend in with the rest of the galaxy's inhabitants. On top of the value of the information to Revan, it also came with a built in program that read the words aloud. It took Revan only moments to decipher the device and Lia was impressed by how quickly the man took to the technology. Recalling his claims of the crime the Citadel accused him of, Lia frowned slightly and asked after the subject.

"What exactly were the charges the Citadel leveled against you?"

Revan glanced up from the device in his hands, halting its lecture as he answered Lia's question honestly.

"In my world… my galaxy, machines are sentient servants. While they aren't given the same rights as most organics, they do have a right to self-determinate should their Master or builder die outside of their control. Most chose to live in seclusion, assimilating knowledge and living out their functionality in peace while others chose to serve a higher purpose. There are varying levels of restrictions on constructing battle-droids, but most are programmed with loyalty algorithms or are fitted with restraining bolts. The C-Sec officer that scanned me said the… nanites injected into me at birth by the Mandalorian Clans violate the Citadel's anti-AI laws…"

Revan trailed off, shaking his head while Lia tried to recall what he'd said earlier, a chill crawling up her spine when she realized the Council had sent a Spectre to burn the man, and the nanites within him alive until none remained. It was a brutal punishment but in the wake of the Geth assault on the Citadel two years before, Lia could understand the wariness of the Council, especially when given the source of Revan's arrival to the Citadel.

"My- my people created a race of non-sentient machines but they somehow grew outside of our control and we were forced to flee our home world and our colonies when they fought back for their survival. We didn't make them sentient… they- they did it themselves. When the Council found out what we did they banned us from forming new colonies and refused to aid us in our war with the Geth… the machines we created."

Lia lowered her head, saddened by the fate of her people. While she had never encountered a Geth, it was an old hatred that many parents within the Flotilla passed on to their children.

"We were forced to survive in space. We assembled what ships we could and for three centuries we've grown our own food and lived as well we can."

Looking up from the point on the floor her eyes had focused upon when she spoke of her people's fate, Lia was both surprised and confused at the expression of utter horror on Revan's features.

"This- this Council bans you from developing AI and when your people discover the nature of the machines you created and you try and fail to right the issue by **their** laws… They forbid your entire race the right to survive? How are you to live without even a colony to sustain your people? There must've been billions of Quarians fleeing your colonies and home world in the wake of the machine's rebellion."

Revan shook his head at the thought, appalled and disgusted at the same time. Politics had always been a hated necessity but to damn and entire race over something outside of the majority of Quarian's control. To punish the species itself for the actions of a few members of its race was beyond immoral. It was an atrocity.

"That- that is a vile atrocity. How can a race claiming to be civilized even entertain the thought of subjecting another to genocide."

Lia hadn't really thought of it in that regard and she stiffened at Revan's words. She'd only known him for a few short hours and already he'd understood the plight of the Quarians and the nature of their people in a way that the galaxy had ignored for over three hundred years. The Quarian was surprised when she heard Revan continue, obviously not finished with his disbelieving rant.

"This is despicable. How- how can your people…. The bloody entirety of your galaxy's sentient races abide such a thing? What did the Geth do in all this? Where are they now?"

Lia gazed at the former Sith Lord in wonder; shocked by his honest and open disgust over the treatment of her people.

"They claimed out lost worlds and remained silent until a few years ago when they attacked a human colony. I- I don't know the whole story behind why they would act after doing nothing for so long outside of the Perseus Veil, but… one of my people worked with the humans to stop the Geth. I only know of the rumors and what the extranet said of the attack on the Citadel. From what I have heard, a rogue Turian Spectre… the enforcers of the Council that work outside of the law somehow gained control or allegiance of the Geth and tried to destroy the Citadel."

Revan snorted in disgust, already liking the unnamed Turian Spectre on principal.

"I like him already."Revan commented, drawing a horrified look from Lia that was lost on the Mandalorian due to his distraction by the data pad in his hands.

"You- you don't understand, Revan! He had thousands, perhaps more humans murdered simply because he could. Humans had nothing to do with the Council and were only trying to expand. They've only been capable of Relay travel for thirty years! Were it not for the Council, the Turians would have wiped out the humans as they tried to do the Krogan."

Revan turned fully to Lia, ignoring the star field before him as he gave the Quarian his complete attention. By the serious expression on Revan's face, Lia knew what he asked would be vital to his views of the galaxy and she swore to herself she would be as honest as she could. She knew right and wrong and the Council's treatment of the man was beyond wrong. He had no way of knowing of their laws and from his story, she knew his appearance in Citadel space was involuntary.

"Tell me everything."

Revan's voice was flat, almost robotic as he focused on the Quarian he'd abducted and inadvertently found a traveling companion in. Lia'Vael nar Ulnay sighed wearily as she began outlining the galaxy as she understood it, careful to explain to Revan her uncertainty of certain events and sentiments. It would have been wrong to mislead the man and unknowingly, Lia secured the complete trust of Revan when he used the Force to scan her and found her answers to be completely honest.

On the Citadel, Captain Bailey was cursing up a storm as he checked and rechecked the security logs of the processing room Revan's possessions, including his damaged light sabers were being kept in. The items had simply vanished and no video-feed existed of the Mysterious Stranger reclaiming his possessions. The lockdown of the Relay had come too late to stop several dozen transports from escaping within the time frame a flight from the Citadel would take and the C-Sec Officer fixed Shari'a T'Nala, the attending C-Sec Officer that had been responsible for the items with a dark glare.

"Officer T'Nala, you were responsible for the unknown fugitive's belongings. You want to tell me how he managed to raise unholy Hell across the entire of C-Sec Academy and not only escape, but recover his illegal and very dangerous possessions as well?"

The Asari C-Sec Officer stood stiffly at attention, her pale blue eyes fixed on a nonexistent point above Captain Bailey's head. She had been trying to process the unidentified subject's mask when the alarm had gone off and while she could have reported that she was still in possession of Revan's mask, she had been appalled to learn a Council Spectre was being sent to execute the man, without a trial.

Had C-Sec not been a part of her life since she was a mere Maiden, Shari'a would have resigned on the spot. As it was, she bore the reprimand from Bailey with the cool acceptance that would have made a Matriarch proud.

"I was trying to aid a group of human C-Sec officers the subject assaulted in the locker rooms on deck 4-a. I was only gone for a few minutes. I don't see how he could have possibly crossed five decks in that time without anyone seeing him. By that point the kinetic barriers within the vents were active and escape from the Academy would have been unlikely without someone having spotted him."

Bailey sighed in annoyance. Standard procedure was followed and while he didn't like the results, Shari'a had done nothing wrong in his books. The Council was simply looking for someone to blame and so far, all the fingers pointed at one, lone Asari.

"The Council is coming down hard on this, Shari'a. They want someone to put on the cross and damnit, I can't stop them this time. That Spectre was one of their best and they aren't just unnerved by the fugitive's technology and appearance through the Conduit,… they now have a very public clusterfuck on their hands and someone has to hang for it. I'm sorry, Officer Shari'a but you need to turn in your badge as well as your files and issued weapons."

Stiffening in disbelief, Shari'a slipped from attention, deflating in the face of her career being thrown down a waste receptacle. The part of her mind that was still not fully matured from a Maiden was glad she hadn't turned over Revan's mask while the majority of her mind was filled with anger at the political interference of the Council. Recalling Garrus Vakarian's very public and vocal falling out with C-Sec after Commander Shepard's death, the Asari Matron removed her badge from her belt as well as her sidearm and keyed in the necessary sequence to unlock her C-Sec files. Storming out of the room, the Asari barely heard Bailey's honest apology and slipped away to her office.

Cleaning out her possessions from her desk and making a quick stop by the lockers to recover a very important mask, the Asari returned to her apartment in the Wards, packing her most personal possessions as well as a few special weapons that she'd acquired in her youthful wanderings before a trip to her bank emptied her personal accounts.

With an angry glance at the Citadel tower in the Presidium on her way from her bank in the financial district, Shari'a made her way to a rapid transit terminal and made her way back to the wards. She had an appointment with a Volus ship dealer and a transmission to send to an Information Broker on Illium that her cousin recommended. She wasn't sure if she was going to try to arrest the Mysterious Stranger that had unraveled her life or if she was going to help him, but Shari'a T'Nala was certain on one thing.

She would find the fugitive if it cost her all the credits she'd saved over the centuries and any hope of a career with C-Sec, should the Council decide to shove their political BS and reinstate her.

While the Asari former C-Sec officer was busy making arrangements to pursue Revan, a small unmarked crate was loaded by a mech onto a human transport that had miraculously gained clearance to leave the still in-progress lockdown. Its destination was a secret Cerberus facility that would study Revan's possessions, minus his mask. The same facility a certain human Spectre was recovering within, his body nearly rebuilt after two years of tireless work and billions of credits.

AN: Wanted to make the last chapter a bit longer... but it felt like it was dragging on so I divided it in two. Hope you're all enjoying it, plan to update again this weekend.


	4. Chapter 3: Omega

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: Loved the responses. I'll admit to a bit of embellishing in regards to my integration of the storylines but I ask you all to consider the premise of this story. I'm meshing to incompatible universes that happen to be of the same genre. They won't overlap and they won't be perfect. In regards to the questions of biotics and the Force as well as the morality issue of Revan? You'll just have to wait and see. I never did say if Revan was a Lightsider or a Darksider, just that he was trying to buy the Republic and Jedi time and if you've played through both KOTOR games you'll know the term JedI is a lot broader in their time than it is in Luke Skywalker's. As for Revan's strengths… lets just see how that turns out.

Chapter 3: Omega

A pulsing hum reverberated through the filters of Lia'Vael nar Ulnay's audio-receptors, buzzing in the young quarian's ears as she shifted uncomfortably at the subtle tickle that built up under her enviro-suit's hard points. The device in her hand skimmed expertly over the curved surface of its target, shearing off large chunks of shoulder-length brown hair and leaving behind a pale, stubble. Revan remained still during the treatment, his C-Sec uniform top laying at his feet as he tapped his right finger against the cargo pocket just above his knee-joint. Appearing on Omega as a C-Sec officer with recognizable features of a fugitive from the Citadel would be counterproductive to the purpose of their flight. Revan wanted to blend in and disappear until he could at the very least understand the new world around him. That on top of the fact that he was exhausted and suffering from the entirely alien sensation of FLT travel in Lia's galaxy was besides the point.

He was a stranger to this world and until he had established himself in some regards and could function without assistance, his hopes of returning to his own galaxy through the Conduit… if it was even possible; were nonexistent. Glancing at the Spectre pistol resting at the front of the shuttle, Revan considered his situation carefully as he reached out experimentally with the Force.

The Force responded quickly and easily, much to the former General's relief. It had worked on the Citadel during his escape and despite his exhaustion; Revan felt the familiar pulses of the Force imbedded in the machinery and the life around him, buried deeply inside of its host, midichlorians.

Midichlorians existed in some form in this galaxy at least and Revan relaxed as Lia ran the razor over his head, shearing off what was left of his hair before Revan raised his hand and made a gesture to Lia. The ministrations of the razor and Lia's gloved and probing hands on his scalp ceased as she handed the razor to Revan. The former JedI Knight glanced at the mirror by what looked to be a refresher at the back corner of the transport and frowned as he rubbed on his beard. He'd miss the beard as it had been with him since neglecting to shave back during the Mandalorian wars. It had been a long campaign in the jungles of Dxun and he'd not had the time or energy to groom himself during the weeks-long trek through the jungles chasing shadows. It'd felt right to keep the beard, even if it was underneath his mask and Revan gave the beard one last look before taking the razor to it. Nostalgia had no place when it came to practicality. He needed to be invisible and removing what was recognizable would he the first and most important step.

"How long until we touch down on Omega?"

Revan asked his quarian companion, carefully trimming and then shaving off his beard before setting aside the razor and running a small amount of water through the fountain at the back of the shuttle and splashing it on his face. Picking up the discarded C-Sec uniform top, Revan used the stolen shirt as a makeshift towel and sniffed slightly, brushing his hand under his nose before tossing the uniformed top into an incinerator and taking the plain black undershirt and pulling the synthetic material over his head.

Shifting uncomfortably, Revan scowled at how tight the shirt was before he brushed some lingering hair from his hands and stomped his boots on the deck plate, trying to rid himself of the hair still lingering on his trousers. Lia watched this all in bemusement before moving to the front of the shuttle and checking their position. Two more jumps and they would reach the Omega Nebula and one more beyond that to reach the Sahrabarik system that held the asteroid field containing the former mining colony and space station. The on-board VI of the transport would do the necessary calculations for the jumps and auto-pilot the shuttle to avoid collision with random space debris, but Lia would need to activate each sequence. Glancing over her shoulder, Lia relayed the results while Revan made a quick and silent effort to clean up the mess his transformation had made. Glancing up from the incinerator as he disposed of his hair and brushed his hands together, Revan nodded to Lia, gesturing to the pistol sitting at the front of the shuttle.

"We need to avoid attention. No one knows you're with me and our first priority is to be invisible. Much as I hate leaving both of us defenseless, we can't go anywhere with that pistol if its as high a profile weapon as you're saying it is. We need to salvage what we can from it and dump it. Preferably in the incinerator."

Lia frowned at the thought of stripping and destroying a perfectly functional device before she nodded reluctantly. Walking around with a Spectre's pistol would be suicidal on a place like Omega and even if they survived someone trying to take it from them, the pistol would draw the attention of some Information Broker and probably bring the Special Tasks Groups or another Spectre after Revan. It would be dangerous finding another weapon on a place like Omega but with so much unmonitored traffic into the station itself and its Relay, they could disappear easily.

"The mods in the weapon should bring us a decent amount of credits. That of course depends on how heavily the previous owner upgraded the weapon."

A light at the base of Lia's faceplate blinked with her words as Revan inspected the black case of the HMWP Mark X pistol before setting it on the workbench and taking a step back. Lia moved to the bench, typing at her Omni-tool and checking over the mods. Not accustomed to quarian body-language, Revan missed the shock that overtook Lia at the sight of the modifications to the weapon.

"That… that is a nasty little Boshtet…"

The quarian's amplified voice was barely a whisper through her faceplate and Revan rose a brow at the shift in the Force around Lia. She seemed almost hopeful at whatever she was seeing and Revan glanced about the transport, searching for alternate weapon options before huffing in disgust.

"_Should have grabbed one of my light sabers at least. Bloody Hell this is going to be messy."_

Clenching his fist, Revan focused on the bulkhead before him, his head throbbing from the combination of Mass Effect fields, exhaustion both physical and mental as well as the emotional ramifications of his situation. It was a bleak outlook and Revan brought his left hand to his face, rubbing at his clean-shaven chin and trying to focus on the alien feel of the skin there.

"I should be able to remove most of these mods. If we can manage to find a merchant on Omega before we're robbed or murdered, we should have enough for some new weapons and armor for you, not to mention fifteen, maybe even twenty thousand credits after!"

Revan nodded absently, his stomach lurching as he moved to watch Lia work. Despite his technical expertise, he was at a complete loss over the technology his companion was working on. Half of her work was done on the Omni-tool while the other half was spent taking apart the weapon and carefully removing and cleaning solid but expensive-looking components. It was similar to weapons he'd used in his own universe but at the same time based on an entirely different set of principals. He would have to unlearn everything he knew about weapons tech and relearn it in this galaxy's standards and Revan let out a breath slowly, focusing on his companion's work.

"No time like the present…"

Revan muttered to himself, focusing on Lia's work and trying to catalogue everything he saw. Having an eidetic memory helped, but it would still take time to learn what was necessary to be functional at low level tech work and know what he needed to to survive.

Omega was about as pleasant as Revan figured it would be from the sense of fear he was getting from Lia and her near-horror story explanation of the station. Aside from the stagnant smell of barely recycled air from ancient and likely unsafe filters, the overall atmosphere of the station would have given the dankest corners of Taris' Undercity a run for its credits. As they moved through the scattered crowds of various aliens that Revan couldn't name, even when he tried to read their surface thoughts, the decay of the ancient mining colony grew more and more apparent.

Despite the advanced technology of nearly every known race in the galaxy having been used in the station's construction, centuries of decay had taken its toll and the more than one of the towering buildings was covered in decades worth of grime and rust. The massive Mass Effect Core that powered the station barely kept the structure together with its Mass Effect Field that also served the purpose of keeping the other mineral-laden asteroids within the field at bay.

"Stay close to me and don't speak to anyone but the merchants."

Lia nodded vigorously at Revan's orders, deciding it was very good advice considering the way the port-master had eyed the due upon their arrival. The Spectre's pistol was stripped and destroyed and until they could reach the marketplace of Omega, they would be helpless as far as the quarian knew.

Revan let out a heavy breath, a pulsing and painful pressure building up in his mind as he used the Force to conceal both his own as well as Lia's presence concealed. Had he not fought in a massive duel on Ziost, been thrown through dozens of Mass Effect Fields and bashed on the back of the head by a C-Sec officer for good measure such a small task would have been a simple thing. As it stood he was nearing the point where regurgitating what little food he'd had on Ziost would become a biological imperative.

"There"

Revan glanced at Lia, turning his head to follow her outstretched arm to the set of doors she'd pointed to. Nodding his understanding, Revan followed the quarian youth as she took the point, her small form weaving through the sentient beings milling about the docking port and passing through the ancient but well-maintained doors leading to Omega's main market district. Maintaining the Force-impulse that disguised them, Revan followed Lia through the doors and spotted her form slipping past a massive Krogan unnoticed and moving up to the counter of a four-eyed Batarian merchant. The two spoke briefly and Revan sacrificed anonymity to get the Batarian to deal with a quarian by using the Force to subtly suggest he accept their equipment.

The Batarian merchant seemed surprised at the quality of the weapon mods and after haggling with the shopkeeper for several minutes, Revan followed Lia towards a set of doors adjacent to the markets where an sign that the former JedI Knight couldn't read for the life of him was advertising some low-cost housing.

Low cost because of a gang war involving the Vorcha and their Blood Pack and the Blue Sun mercenaries. Dodging various aliens and humans as he followed Lia into the housing section of the station, Revan scowled at the duffle bag he was carrying. The weight wasn't too great but it was still damned inconvenient lugging the pack while trying to dodge pedestrians and pickpockets.

It was demeaning being reduced to this, but Revan pressed on, his left eye twitching slightly as he calmly followed Lia and waited patiently for her to get them some housing. It didn't need to be permanent and Revan was unconcerned over the odd and dirty looks he and Lia were receiving, the M-4 Shuriken submachine gun Revan kept firmly in his right hand while his left held the strap of his pack secured as well as the M-23 Katana shotgun Lia kept secured at the small of her back went a long way in keeping the gazes short and the memories of the encounters short-lived in the minds of those looking upon the duo with hostility or greed.

By the time Revan and Lia secured a cheap apartment in the dank slums, Revan was practically dead on his feet. It had been over a full day since he was sent through the Conduit and that had been preceded by several days dodging Sith patrols and actually infiltrating the Sith Palace and battling the Emperor and his guards. Even the Force had limits and Revan carelessly tossed the pack containing their purchases on a couch before clearing the heatsink from his SMG and collapsing on the single bed in the room.

"I've been up for a Hell of a long time so I'll just sleep right… here."

Lia frowned beneath her mask as Revan's voice reached her, muffled in the pillows and bed sheets as he was laying face-down. Sighing in annoyance, Lia moved to the carelessly discarded pack and dragged it from the couch to a small table nestled in the corner of the apartment's main living area. Revan had been patient and polite to her, despite the circumstances of their meeting and Lia pushed aside her frustration at the man having taken the apartment's only bed when she realized he had been through quite and ordeal and that despite her abduction, Revan had never actually threatened her.

Sighing wearily, Lia shifted through their purchases, finding a sealed canister of sterilized nutrient paste. Setting the canister on the table, Lia typed a quick set of commands onto her Omni-tool and did a quick scan of the canister before she nodded in satisfaction and attached the canister to a retractable tube at the base of her mask. The tube fed into a small pump that drained the canister of its contents and fed them to Lia via-feeding tube and the quarian quietly finished her meal before carefully detaching the canister and checking her suit's seals. The entire process of eating and checking her suit took close to an hour and by the time she'd finished, Lia was feeling the effects of the long and eventful day.

Yawning beneath her mask, Lia moved to the kitchen area of the apartment, attaching a filter to the water tap and filling the device before repeating the process she'd taken to eat her dinner. Several more minutes were spent rechecking her suit's seals and securing the water filtration system in her field pack before Lia moved to sit down on the couch. Removing her shotgun from the magnetic holster at the back of her enviro-suit, Lia checked the safety though she chose to keep the weapon loaded before she drifted into a restless and uncomfortable sleep.

Neither the Quarian or her companion realized the grave error they'd made in choosing their housing. On the other side of the slums, near the air filtration system a group of Blood Pack were gathered and a single Vorcha clumsily forced an unmarked canister into the system's air scrubber before pressing a series of holographic keys with his clawed fingers. Hissing and snarling, the Vorcha gave a fanged smirk as it thought of the weapon the Collectors had given him. Soon the Blood Pack would control Omega and they wouldn't have to fear the likes of Archangel, Aria or the Blue Suns.

Cerberus Operative Miranda Lawson sat back in her ergonomic desk chair with a sigh as she cast a glance at the crate that had been delivered to her just hours before. The Illusive Man had made it clear that Shepard's reconstruction was to be her top priority but had also sent imbedded within the message a file on everything the Citadel had on their unscheduled visitor. Using Cerberus' resources to find the mysterious new player would be a waste until the man chose to resurface and as she checked over the items within the crate, the genetically enhanced human Operative was both intrigued and confused. The scans of the armor had revealed only solid metal plates but a subtle probing of her hand along the edge of one of the gauntlets had revealed a concealed set of wrist-mounted blades that ran along the outer edge of the gauntlets like jagged and serrated teeth.

Having nearly lost her finger when the blades had popped out of the side of the gauntlets, Miranda had been wary to continue her hands-on examination of the armor itself and took out the odd Omni-tool the man had been wearing. It lacked a holographic display and after determining through very thorough and invasive scans that the device was not a weapon, the Operative had frowned and pushed at the small keypad on the device. Aside from a power spike, nothing had happened and finding the device to be some crude communicator, Miranda had moved on to one of the two cylinders the man had been found with.

According to C-Sec's initial scans the devices were small bombs with a yield equivalent to a small tactical nuke but Cerberus' more advanced scanners had shown the power source to be of some unknown energy signature that lacked any Element Zero. The lack of eezo in any of the devices was what had gotten Cerberus' attention and Miranda frowned as she searched the device for a release to its casing. The scans had shown that it came apart but there was nothing but a button on the side and that had only caused the device to hum and vibrate ominously before it grew silent.

Each successive attempt to activate the device or remove its casing failed and Miranda resorted to using a small and controlled magnetic field to finally detach the case. What looked like a lenses fell from the device to her table, followed by a blue crystal of some unknown element and a small undefined circular object that was giving off a power signature relative to that of a fighter-craft or a small transport ship.

Intrigued, Miranda continued to poke and prod the device for several hours before she began trying to reassemble it. Much to the Cerberus Operative's annoyance the components of the device would not lock back into place and she found herself stuck with a small pile of useless components in an alien device that lacked any of the mechanical principles that any machine in the entire galaxy operated on. The power cell she found housed a powerful form of anti-matter that was held stable in some type of stabilizer field that lacked any of the readings of a Mass Effect Field. There was a small leak of Ion-based energy that the scanners barely registered and Miranda frowned as she examined the odd device, not knowing the first thing about its function.

"Maybe the entire thing is a portable power supply of some kind."

The woman's voice was heavily cultured and accented in Australian. After several more minutes spent examining the device, Miranda set the disassembled light saber in a small case and returned it as well as the gauntlets to the crate that had come directly from the Citadel. It would take time to analyze the devices the Mysterious Stranger had brought with him and despite her interest in the new technology and the cold chill that ran up her spine at the thought of the man being the vanguard of some Reaper attack, Miranda returned to the updated report from Wilson on Commander Shepard's progress.

The Commander was coming along well in his recovery and Miranda scowled as she thought of all the tie and money Cerberus had invested in one single human. Not putting a control device in the Commander would come back to hurt Cerberus, Miranda knew. Despite John Shepard's experience in space from his childhood as a spacer on various alliance ships and his exemplary and heroic actions on Elysium, Shepard was too focused on the moral implications of his decisions to be any real help to Cerberus. The man had taken steps during his time as a Spectre to hunt down and destroy several Cerberus operations and bases and while he may have been a hero and an asset to humanity, he was dangerous to Cerberus.

Scowling at the thought, Miranda cast a curious glance to the crate containing Revan's possessions before sighing and returning to her report. Curiosity would have to wait. She had orders from the Illusive Man and until they were carried out, the strange items would have to remain a side-project.

Former C-Sec Officer Shari'a T'Nala sat quietly in a transport bound for Illium, Despite the bad turn her career had taken, the Asari Matron felt a small bit of satisfaction at the mask she kept in the bag stowed above her in the overhead compartment. It would prove to be useful if she could get it functional again. Due in part to her previous position with C-Sec, the Asari chose to bring the device with her and examine it more closely well away from the prying eyes and ears of the Citadel. She knew the reasons behind the Council's harsh actions but to let fear of Saren's attack drive them to so brutally execute the mysterious stranger was appalling.

Morally outraged as well as furious over the Council placing the blame of the loss of Revan's possessions on her, Shari'a was not sorry to see her career go, just angry that it had not been her own choice. Scowling as she leaned back in her seat, the Asari missed the intense gaze of a Turian seated several rows behind her.

The Turian lacked any facial markings and was dressed in simple plain clothing of a black and gray. Two bright green eyes set on a stoic avian face watched Shari'a closely. She was the only connection to Revan's disappearance from the Citadel and her immediate departure had not gone unnoticed by the Council or the Spectres and the Council wasn't going to just ignore the former Officer. The fact that this particular Spectre had a personal interest in tracking the unnamed fugitive down since he'd escaped his custody.


	5. Chapter 4: Quarantine

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 4: Quarantine

Bad luck seemed to follow him, Revan lamented as the slums he and Lia had taken temporary refuge in while the former Dark Lord of the Sith tried to learn at least a little bit of English and Quarian writing and how to use an Omni-tool was quarantined. With her enviro-suit, Lia was well-protected from the effects of the plague but she still needed a ready and sterilized supply of food and filtered water every couple of days and the credits the Spectre's weapon upgrades had gotten the two were running low. The solid black Onyx Mark III heavy armor Revan wore had been expensive, but necessary with their surroundings and Lia had invested in an upgrade for her kinetic barrier at Revan's urging. With the cost of their current safe house, only a little more than three thousand credits remained between the two of them.

Lia typed away at her Omni-tool, cursing to herself every once in a while when she would have to write a new sequence in the AI hacking program she was trying to write to take over one of the nanites in Revan's body. A small drop of crimson blood rested in a sealed container before Lia, a gift from Revan after he accepted an injection of antibiotics after a particularly nasty bout of food poisoning several days prior. It had been nearly a month since they'd come to Omega and while they shared the same living space and assisted each other in whatever work was available; Lia still didn't know much about Revan aside from the fact that he appeared to be able to read minds, had advanced controls over biotic-like abilities and was obsessed with making himself useful.

The Mandalorian-raised former Jedi had been absorbing the writings and how to use the cheap Omni-tool Lia had bought him. Obsessive focus and concentration had given the former Dark Lord the ability to competently read standard human-based texts as well as Quarian-language based programs on his Omni-tool. It was refreshing for Lia to use the language she was familiar with to communicate and work with Revan and his progress was making him less of a dependant and more of an asset. Between the two of them they'd managed to upgrade the kinetic barriers on Lia's enviro-suit and Revan's armor well past military grade functionality. The program they'd written to upgrade their barriers would have fetched a hefty amount of credits on the market if the market was still functioning in their section of Omega. In the meantime they had more pressing concerns.

Revan was obsessing over his submachine gun, trying to decrease the M-4 Shuriken's recoil by tweaking its Mass Effect field with his Omni-tool. Making his weapons more effective just came naturally to his Mandalorian-raised personality and while the technology he was working on was foreign, he was beginning to piece together the functionality of the various new tools he'd been exposed to. It was dramatically different from any tech he'd worked with in his own galaxy but Revan was fairly certain he could manage it with Lia's continued assistance. They'd used the syringe from the antibiotics he'd taken after eating some spoiled Varren meat to draw several thousand nanites from his bloodstream in the hopes of adapting them to other functions. With the tens of millions in place from the treatments Revan had been given as a Mandalorian child, it wasn't even a noticeable loss and the nanites in his body that remained quickly replaced those removed from the various elements floating around the former General's body.

A point two five variance in Revan's DNA gave the plague attacking every non-human but the Vorcha in the slums a window of opportunity to attack the fourth of Revan's genome that was only near-human and not actually human. The result was a distracting headache and a slightly high fever that the former Jedi Knight ignored as he forced himself to concentrate on his work and assimilating as much knowledge about Lia's galaxy as he could. It wasn't until he'd started coughing that Lia was drawn from her own work to spare the former Jedi a worried look.

The plague didn't affect humans and Revan's nanites should and would have acted as a synthetic immune system if it hadn't been for one minor detail. The plague attacking the slums of Omega was manufactured and therefore designed to bypass immune system boosters and synthetic countermeasures. Until a cure could be found that could eliminate the plague fast enough without killing the host, there was no hope for those lacking complete immunity.

Lia flinched at a violent cough from her companion as the man reassembled his SMG, her eyes moving to the nanites she was working on. The plague was ravaging the quarantined slums and had it not been for the quick and in their case unfortunate actions of Aria to seal off the entire section of Omega while it was being ravaged by the plague the illness could very well have been all over Omega and perhaps even beyond. Small comfort for those locked in with the deadly malady.

"Revan are you sure you're alright? I heard there was a Salarian Doctor offering free treatment for anyone suffering from the plague's effects and… well what do we have to lose?"

Lia had been asking the man repeatedly over his health and while Revan himself wasn't entirely sure given the increased pressure inside his skull and the wet cough he'd developed in the last several hours, the Force was not screaming danger and Revan reassured himself that it was not the plague but a reaction to some spoiled food he'd eaten. The Force and technology could do many things but it still took time to clear out whatever poison was affecting him. The fact that he was mostly human and that humans were immune played a large part in Revan's complacency, but the effects were nauseating and distracting from his very necessary work.

"I don't have time to be sick, Lia. Until this plague is gone and the quarantine is lifted we are trapped here… with ever decreasing supplies and likely thousands of very hungry and very hostile sentient beings who would most definitely place higher value on their own livelihood and comfort than those of strangers. We have enough food here. We have reliable enough weapons and defenses. Why bother with unnecessary risks? I took the antibiotics and with me being mostly human, there is little danger of the plague affecting me. We can't believe a rumor in a situation like this. We have to make due with what we have and protect what is ours."

It wasn't denial. Revan knew his body and its responses well enough to know what was a danger to him and the plague that was ravaging Omega's slums was not. The mortality rate was too high for the Force to ignore such a danger and while he would definitely be exposed to the plague and perhaps some of its symptoms, Revan knew he would live. Living was enough… it was how he'd lived with himself after Malachor V. The Force would sustain him if his body and its nanites failed. It would just take time. It always took time, he only needed patience.

Not bothering to voice his reasoning, Revan continued to suffer from the effects of the plague, his body and its defenses fighting the bio-engineered weapon of the Collectors while his quarian companion worried over the steadily increasing coughing fits of her companion as well as the ashen pallor of his skin. The man would admit to being ill, but would brush off her concerns. Had she known Revan better, Lia may have taken what he said as truth and continued working on strengthening their apartment's defenses. Lia'Vael nar Ulnay did not know Revan's abilities, though. He'd been vague in his explanations to her questions and she'd been too distracted by her work to truly take the time to push Revan for more detailed answers as to his abilities and his past.

It was concerning at times to the quarian youth to realize the man she'd been working with almost every waking moment for weeks was a stranger to her and while she made some efforts to change that, Lia was afraid of the glimmer of darkness that would flicker in Revan's eyes when she would ask him about where he was from. The man simply had no interest in reliving his past it seemed. Revan only rushed forward, his focus bordering on compulsive obsession. Were she to describe his actions to another, Lia would have been hard pressed to offer any true observation aside from their initial interaction. Revan was quiet and attentive when absorbing knowledge and helpful as well as brilliant in his application of his abilities and knowledge.

Still, Revan lacked any strong feelings over his situation and it showed. The man treated the knowledge he gained as necessary to survival and functionality in the new galaxy he was trapped in and failed to see how his own world's technology and its very different function was showing in his work. Instead of changing the principles of the tech he was still learning to use, Revan implemented his own understanding of his own galaxy's technology into his work. Technology that had reached its limited point of advancement thousands of years before. The result was a kinetic barrier that was near-impenetrable and supplemented by nanotech long outlawed by the Citadel.

Revan's condition was not improving, despite the lack of danger Revan felt through the Force and while he was able to ignore the possible dangers of having the plague, Lia was not. It was what led the young woman from their shared quarters to the streets of the slums as she walked along the centuries-old corridors towards Mordin Solus' clinic. Revan had simply passed out over his work on his SMG and Lia was at a loss for what to do. She had next to no understanding of human reactions to sickness and after rearranging Revan's unresponsive body into a more comfortable position, she couldn't stand idly by and wait. She needed help and wasn't afraid to ask for it. Sealing the door behind her, Lia took her M-23 Katana firmly in her hands and moved through the abandoned corridors, her breath heavy beneath her mask as she cautiously worked her way towards Mordin's clinic in search of help for her companion.

Former C-Sec Officer Shari'a T'Nala quickly checked her Omni-tool to confirm she was in the right district of Nos Astra before confirming the address of the Information Broker her cousin had initiated contact with. It had taken her weeks as well as thousands of credits to get a face-to-face meeting with Liara T'Soni. Apparently the Information Brokers had all been busy with unsubstantiated rumors of the cause of the disappearing human colonies as well as the apparent survival of one Commander John Shepard, Alliance N7 Operative and Council Spectre. None of this really mattered to Shari'a, though. She only cared about finding the man who'd escaped C-Sec custody weeks before and clear her conscience and perhaps her name as well.

The Information Broker's officer overlooked a trading floor in the glittering streets of Nos Astra and Shari'a tried her best to ignore the exposed feeling that came over her when she was granted leave by the Asari assistant who'd introduced herself as Nyxeris to enter the office. A young Asari Maiden sat at an expensive desk, her eyes locked on the terminal before her as she typed away with obsessive focus. Behind the Information Broker an expansive window made up the entire opposite end of the officer. Perfect for seeing if someone was coming for you but at the same time presenting a very easy target to a sharpshooter.

"Miss T'Soni?"

Liara barely glanced up from her terminal, sparing the former C-Sec Officer a quick glance before she motioned to the seat in front of her desk and resumed her work. Shari'a took a seat and quietly waited for Liara to continue, the silence between the two Asari drawing out for several moments before the younger Asari's gray eyes flickered over her terminal's screen and then locked with Shari'a's.

"Ah, former Officer T'Nala. I see you've asked for my assistance in locating a certain fugitive and his belongings which escaped custody from the Citadel several weeks ago?"

The casual way the Information Broker spoke put Shari'a on edge momentarily before she forced herself to relax into the comfortable ergonomic chair and confirmed the accuracy of Liara's assumption. Liara frowned briefly as she cast a glance at her terminal, her eyes lowering to her desk for a scarce moment and then rising to meet Shari'a's. Her contacts had filtered all relevant information of the man C-Sec had arrested and interrogated and while the treatment of the man had been deplorable, she also understood the dangers this individual represented to the galaxy after having seen the power of the Reapers first-hand in her journey with Commander Shepard.

Flinching slightly at the thought of her formerly deceased lover, Liara carefully compartmentalized her own personal feelings over the matter and cast an inquiring glance at the field-pack strapped to Shari'a's shoulder.

"My sources have been unable to locate the fugitive, I'm afraid. I can confirm that he escaped C-Sec through the air ducts and took a transport from the Citadel, however there have been no reports of anyone matching the man's description that are solid. He has either vanished to do Goddess knows what or has disguised his appearance. Too many craft left the Citadel in the timeframe of your fugitive's escape to e certain where he went."

Liara turned her attention back to her terminal, typing in a quick sequence and frowning at the information before her. Every time the name Cerberus came up, all she could see was the burnt remains of Shepard, the face of the Drell that had helped her find his body and give it to the pro-human extremist group.

Despite all the horrible things Cerberus had done, she couldn't give up the chance that they could bring back Shepard and she had given them his body and in the process ; gotten the Drell, Feron captured by the Shadow Broker's agents and made an enemy of the most prominent and powerful spy network in the known galaxy. The Shadow Broker was not forgiving but then again, Liara had openly stood against his organization and stopped him from giving Shepard's body to the Collectors. She went a step further and since the day she'd last seen her lover's body, she dedicated every waking moment to finding the Shadow Broker, destroying his work and making him pay for what he tried to do to Shepard and what he'd done to her Feron.

Liara's time as an Information Broker had been a humbling and eye-opening experience. Gone was the naïve and caring archeologist and in its place was something every human male had learned to fear and respect. A woman scorned.

"I… I did however find that the… unnamed fugitive's belongings were stolen from C-Sec by Cerberus. I am certain I do not need to tell you who they are."

Shari'a sighed, rubbing her eyes wearily as she wondered as to the involvement of a known enemy of the Council in the fugitive's near-complete disappearance.

"I suppose we both know what has happened to him now."

Liara failed to respond for a moment to Shari'a's statement, her eyes flickering to her terminal's screen as it displayed a real-time image of a Turian Spectre with listening equipment. The sensors within her officer had tracked the Citadel Operative as soon as he'd scaled the rooftops of an adjacent building and with a quick motion, Liara turned off the screen and removed a datapad, typing out a quick and short message before sliding the pad over to Shari'a. The former C-Sec Officer frowned before her eyes shifted to the text Liara had hastily typed out.

"_We are being watched, play along and I will explain later."_

Turning her eyes from the datapad to Liara, Shari'a gave a quick, imperceptible nod and sat back in her chair, sighing heavily.

"Cerberus would have him dissected and spread across seven systems by now. They wouldn't have any issues with illegal tech, let alone abduction and theft of Citadel property. This is a hopeless path, the technology the man brought with him isn't used to destroy us."

On a nearby rooftop, Turian Spectre Tydinus Halcyon growled as he tossed aside his listening device. He'd wasted weeks tracking Shari'a T'Nala's progress while his own network of spies confirmed that it was Cerberus that had infiltrated the Citadel and stolen the fugitive's possessions. He'd continued following the very small lead the former C-Sec officer's personal crusade had drudged up, but hearing his own source's information that he'd received weeks before corroborated by an outside source, not to mention the very expensive inquiry the Council had made to the Shadow Broker's agents that had reaped the same information was too much of a waste of time for his tastes. He'd become a Spectre to avoid these kinds of messes and not he was back where he started.

Stowing his gear and casting one last baleful glare in the direction of Liara T'Soni's office, the Spectre began his difficult ascent of the building, cursing Asari architecture and the Council's new policy of following every minor lead. The fact that they had the information to clear Shari'a's name and did not bother to acknowledge their mistake spoke volumes to the Spectre. Failure was not to be tolerated. Sighing, Tydinus' mandibles flared slightly in irritation as he realized he would need to track down the registry of every last ship to leave the Citadel in the window of opportunity Revan had to make good his escape. It would be time-consuming and a headache he didn't need but it was his only option. The Spectre only hoped the Council would not hold him responsible when the time came to report his progress.

Liara T'Soni smirked slightly as she switched off her terminal screen once more. Her informants had spotted the Spectre that had been charged to execute Revan the moment he'd entered the Imathea Cluster. As the Council had never bothered to seek her services as an Information Broker following her vocal support of Shepard's theory on the Reapers, she had no ties with the Citadel and no love was lost there.

Had Liara not personally known Shari'a's cousin, she may not have imparted the next tidbit of information to the former C-Sec officer, but having a previous and reliable client vouch for Shari'a, Liara offered it freely… minus a small finder's fee of course.

"Its safe now, Shari'a. Cerberus does not have the fugitive… his name is Revan Qel-Droma by the way. He is actually a rather interesting personality from what my contact on Omega observed before he was… well, that is part of the reason I did not want the Citadel to know of this. From what I have pieced together of the man, he is from another galaxy that is filled with sentient life that evolved upon a very different path both culturally as well as technologically. It took cannibalizing an outdated data recorder salvaged from an archaic shuttle for that much information. He is currently residing in a quarantined district of Omega's slums with a Quarian by the name of Lia'Vael nar Ulnay. The poor girl was on her pilgrimage on the Citadel when he abducted both her as well as her transport but from the recordings from her shuttle, she has decided to work with him in the meantime…"

Liara quickly took the datapad she'd passed to Shari'a earlier and entered the necessary codes to unlock the information stored within. Shari'a took the device warily, her eyes focused on the small screen that showed Lia giving Revan a haircut and the two bickering over what parts of the Spectre pistol to keep and which parts to sell. Aside from various video and audio files was a small summary of information from Liara's contact on Omega. The information was thorough and followed simple observations of the subject as he interacted with others in the slums he'd taken refuge in.

"I regret to say my informant was taken ill by the plague affecting the slums and is no longer active."

Dead; she meant. Disbelievingly, Shari'a looked up from the datapad to meet Liara's eyes. She would have given her biotics to have that kind of intelligence back on the Citadel. The Information Broker simply smiled, ducking her head slightly as she answered the unasked question in Shari'a's eyes.

"I am a very good Information Broker."

Shari'a huffed slightly in disbelief, only able to nod to the younger Asari's statement as she curiously perused the information on the datapad. She would have to code-lock the data pad before leaving of course, but in the meantime she needed something else from the Information Broker. Reaching into the satchel slung over her shoulder, Shari'a slowly removed Revan's mask from the cloth she'd wrapped it in and set it on Liara's desk carefully. The former Asari scientist simply smiled knowingly as she accepted the device, turning the mask over in her hands and frowning at how similar it looked to the N7 Breather mask she'd last seen Shepard wear on the original Normandy. It wasn't the same though, and Liara pushed past the ball of hatred and sorrow she felt remembering that time, her keen gray eyes studying each chip in the mask's red and black paint and each dent and puncture in the aged Mandalorian mask Revan had recovered from Cathar nearly a decade before.

While biotics were most definitely not the Force, the Asari's ability to meld telepathically with other sentient beings offered the Asari Maiden the barest glimpse of the emotions imprinted onto the mask through the Force. Gasping in shock at the sensation, Liara dropped the mask, her pupils completely dilated and black as she pushed herself away from the desk to stand and pace the room briefly. Shari'a, having never attempted to connect mentally with an inanimate object, even inadvertently merely frowned in confusion while she waited for Liara to recover.

"That- that mask. It has a mental signature! I- I've never felt- never felt such hatred in my life."

The only sensation she could describe from her brief mental impression of the mask was simply that, hate. The level of that hatred though, was suffocating. Whatever that mask stood for it was not something as simple as anger or revenge. It was a cold hatred that encased every fiber of ones being and permeated their every act. With a completely serious expression, Liara turned her eyes to meet Shari'a's and let out a quivering breath, still trying to banish the sensation of hatred that made the anger she felt against the Shadow Broker seem small by comparison.

"Do not let your guard down around Revan. The- the imprint I received through that mask gave the glimpse of a very disturbed mind, perhaps even one damaged beyond repair. His actions cannot be trusted or understood. He-"

Liara staggered slightly, bringing a hand to her head as she tried to fight off the nausea she felt after the brief insight into the mind of one of the Republic's most brutal killers and once vaunted hero. Beneath the hatred had been a drive, a cold and logical drive that focused on only one end goal, regardless of the costs.

"He would burn a thousand worlds to reach his goal… Goddess only knows what it is, but he- he can't be trusted."

The horror and absolute certainty in Liara's eyes when she cast a pleading and slightly hysterical look to Shari'a was enough to convince the former C-Sec Officer to take the advice seriously. She wasn't about to go gallivanting carelessly into Omega in search of a man who'd taken down a Spectre without lifting a finger and evaded Citadel Security successfully. It would have been something impulsive that was better suited to a Maiden, not a Matron and Shari'a took the mask from Liara's desk, gazing into its design thoughtfully before rewrapping it and returning it to her pack. Thanking the disheveled and distracted Information Broker Shari'a made her way to the apartment she was temporarily renting on the Asari colony, her thoughts turning to gathering her belongings and getting to Omega as soon as was possible. What she'd failed to share with Liara was the recordings from the mask that spanned both Revan's time as a Dark Lord of the Sith, a Jedi General in service of the Republic and the actions of the mask's previous owner, a young Mandalorian woman who'd refused to take part in a genocidal slaughter on Cathar years before and had paid the price with her life.

She knew enough to be wary of the man who owned the mask and called himself Revan. Having seen many atrocities and battles through the man's own eyes in a sense, Shari'a was more knowledgeable than anyone else in her galaxy as to what Revan was capable of, but unlike Liara and countless Republic citizens and Jedi who'd questioned his decisions, Shari'a knew the truth as Revan's former apprentice Darth Malak had. They were facing a hopeless war with an infinitely more powerful enemy with the drive to push the rest of their galaxy to extinction while the rest of the galaxy was content to ignore the threat in favor of more local and simpler concerns. Such a damning scenario brought back memories of the warnings of Commander Shepard before his disappearance two years ago as well as the Council's inaction to first his accusations of Saren and then his claims of the Reapers being behind the rogue Spectre's war against the Council.

Cerberus Operative Miranda Lawson shifted uncomfortable as she followed Commander Shepard into a quarantined section of Omega's slums. Knowing the plague only affected aliens and not humans was comforting, but the smell as well as the general feel of the death around her was unsettling. She had no great love of alien species but she neither had any issues with them. To see dozens of bodies laying about in pools of plague-ridden blood and piled onto pyres was a visceral and damning sight.

The hopelessness of it all weighed on her as she followed the Commander with Jacob Taylor covering their backs and Shepard in the lead. She just hoped Mordin Solus could deliver an effective countermeasure against the seeker swarms the Collectors were using the paralyze the colonists they abducted. The Cerberus Operative nearly opened fire on a quarian that was creeping along the near-deserted corridors, only stopping when she realized the female quarian was not stalking them but actually heading in a very specific direction. One they were following as well since they'd had the great pleasure of entering the quarantine zone.

"Shepard, look there."

John Shepard cast a quick glance to Miranda before turning his eyes to where the Operative was pointing. Spotting the tell-tale enviro-suit of a quarian, Shepard briefly recalled his interaction with his former crewmate Tali'Zorah vas Neema formerly nar Rayaa on Freedom's Progress. It had been a disaster when the rest of Tali's squad had broken with their plan to work together and were subsequently slaughtered. Shaking his head at the thought of the incident on the abducted and abandoned human colony, Shepard quickly holstered his assault rifle and approached the distracted quarian woman. He'd seen enough dead quarians on Freedom's Progress to let this one slip by him.

"Excuse me!"Shepard's voice pierced the silence of the corridor and Lia'Vael turned with a gasp, here shotgun coming to bear on the Commander as he quickly raised his hands and made a quick motion to his Cerberus companions to hold their fire. Jacob and Miranda quickly complied and Lia relaxed slightly at the friendly expression on the human's face.

"Keelah you scared me! What- what do you want, human?"

Knowing not to take offence to Lia's slightly stammered question as well as its phrasing, Shepard offered a kind smile, keeping his hands out in a gesture of supplication as he slowly approached the quarian youth.

"You look like you're trying to get to Doctor Solus' clinic. We're heading in that direction and if you can keep from shooting at us we wouldn't mind the extra gun."

Lia sighed in relief when the armored human stopped approaching her. She knew better than to trust strangers but she'd made a habit of rash decisions in the wake of her pilgrimage's disastrous beginning and while she was wary of the three humans, their apparent leader appeared to be genuine in his offer. Most humans and other species didn't bother to hide their resentment of quarians but this man did not appear hostile to her and his companions both had neutral expressions as they checked their surroundings cautiously for outside threats.

"That- I couldn't ask you to take me there but if- if you are going that way as well I would appreciate the company."

Shepard smiled gently at the young woman as she lowered her weapon and approached her, offering his right hand to her. Lia gazed at the gesture curiously for a moment before she remembered what her father had told her about human gestures and which ones to avoid before she took the man's five-digit hand in her three, shaking it firmly.

"Commander Shepard. That's Miranda and Jacob over there."The man offered, gesturing to his companions after introducing himself and stirring a distant memory in Lia's mind that failed to surface at that moment. The quarian nervously glanced at the two humans accompanying Shepard, the woman giving her a blank but non-hostile look while the dark-skinned man offered a friendly nod and a slight smile to her.

"L- Lia'Vael nar Ulnay."

Shepard's smile wavered slightly at the girl's title, realizing that Lia was a quarian on her pilgrimage that happened to be in just about the worst place imaginable.

"If you don't mind me asking, how did a quarian on her pilgrimage end up in a quarantine zone on Omega? You're not in any danger of the plague are you?"

Pushing past the surprise of a human knowing about the pilgrimage, Lia caught the look of concern on the man's face as he inquired as to the plague and she shifted nervously, trying to decide what she could tell the humans of her very odd companion.

"I- I came here with a friend I was helping. The pilgrimage is not just about bringing something of value back to the flotilla but to also prove that we are willing to give of ourselves without wishing for something in return. He- he has taken ill recently and I was hoping to get some help for him from Doctor Solus."

Shepard's concerned expression grew as he cast a glance towards his companions. He couldn't help but respect the quarian youth's courage to trek through a quarantined war zone for her companion and he quickly checked the map EDI had uploaded to his HUD upon arrival on Omega.

"Is your friend far from here? We can bring him to Mordin's clinic for you. Save you the return trip if we can help it."

Lia's shoulders rose and dropped slightly as she let out a heavy breath in relief. It was terrifying stalking through the abandoned streets with only dead bodies as company and she quickly agreed to Shepard's offer, missing the annoyed look that crossed Miranda's features at the delay to their mission.

"Should have stayed on the bloody Normandy."

Miranda moaned quietly to herself, thinking of the crate of unique and alien technology she'd taken the pains of securing and stowing on the transport off of Project Lazarus' research station. She'd been making progress at reconstructing the odd cylindrical device with EDI's assistance and was loathe to the distraction from her work. Still, stopping the Collectors was her priority and she wouldn't stop until the threat to humanity was dealt with accordingly.

"Thank you for this, you don't know what this means to me- to us! Revan has been ill for days not and is showing signs of the plague."

Miranda would later support Shepard's seemingly meaningless distractions as the one he was about to embark on would be very advantageous to her own little side project. Of course, that acceptance would come only after Mordin confirmed that humans were indeed immune to the plague and that Revan was only susceptible because of his near-human and not total-human status.


	6. Chapter 5: Dossier: The Mysterious Stran

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 5: Dossier: The Mysterious Stranger

Revan was barely conscious when Lia returned to their apartment with Shepard and his team in tow. With her concentration on the ill former Jedi Knight before her, Lia missed the stunned and wary expressions of the humans who'd followed her. Turning when they failed to enter the apartment, Lia frowned at the uneasy expressions of the woman and the dark-skinned man as Shepard rubbed at his short dark brown hair in a nervous gesture he'd developed when it was shaved off for his basic training.

"You said he's being affected by the plague?"

Shepard's voice was nervous, but his eyes were resting on the near-human as he stood slowly from the table he was hunched over, snapping his SMG together in a quick and practiced gesture before securing it to the hip of his armor.

"There a reason we have company, Lia?"

The voice was hoarse from coughing and the pale skin of the man who'd spoken stood in stark contrast to the dimly lit room. The man almost appeared wraith-like as he slowly approached the trio of humans with Lia nervously at his side. Shepard found his eyes locked with the dark brown pools of the man, an inhuman flash of gold catching the other man's shadowed eyes as he approached the Cerberus Operatives and the former human Spectre.

"Revan Qel-Droma."

Revan offered his hand to Shepard, smirking viciously at the unease of the humans as they wondered if the plague had somehow jumped to humans. Allowing the trio to stew in their fears for a moment and reveling in the sensation of it, Revan licked his lips unconsciously, the taste of blood nearly causing him to start a whole new coughing fit.

"Commander Shepard."

Surprisingly, the former N7 Operative took Revan's hand and fixed the former Jedi's eyes with his own, a concerned frown crossing his features.

"Your friends going to introduce themselves?"

Revan's lips were upturned and his pale features had become sharp in the filtered light of the corridor as the five sentient beings moved out of the apartment, Lia quickly collecting their scattered belongings and placing them in a field pack before she raced after the humans and Revan.

"Sorry, Jacob Taylor."Getting over his unease at the thought of the plague jumping to humans, the former Alliance Corsair offered his hand to Revan, shaking the taller sentient's hand and banishing his fears. Something about the man didn't seem human and that was enough for Jacob to look past his initial fear. Miranda merely rose a brow, stepping back from the man as he turned to her and smiled cruelly at her unease.

"Lawson… Miranda Lawson."

Shepard glanced at his companions a moment, his expression pensive before he turned to Lia, his question dying on his lips when Revan staggered and collapsed mid-step. Moving quickly, the former Spectre caught the collapsing former Sith Lord, nearly falling himself when nearly two hundred and fifty pounds of solid muscle, bone and armor in a six foot two frame fell against him. Jacob quickly stepped forward, helping the Commander and commenting as he struggled to keep Revan's unconscious weight upright.

"This guy weighs a ton!"

Lia shifted nervously, her hand moving to rest on Revan's drooping forehead and then snapping back as she muttered a quick prayer.

"Keelah he's burning up. We have to hurry!"

Shepard, catching the panic in the young quarian's voice nodded agreement and turned to Miranda, her name leaving his lips conveying the urgency of their situation and what he needed her to do.

"Miranda."

Operative Lawson nodded grimly to Shepard's unspoken command, taking point as her two male companions dragged the third man between them through the corridors and towards Mordin's clinic. They'd cleared most of the Blue Sun and Blood Pack resistance in the area and with Miranda in the lead, the artificially enhanced human made short work of the scattered stragglers. As she worked, the Cerberus Operative felt a strange suspicion forming at the back of her mind as she cast a quick glance at the unconscious man held between Shepard and Taylor as they hauled the man towards aid. The plague didn't affect humans or vorcha. Such a jump would require the plague to be engineered if it were to affect multiple species and she had caught the pale gold, nearly feline light that had crossed Revan's eyes when he'd approached them at his apartment.

She would have to get the Commander's opinion as well as Jacob's, but Miranda recalled the data files that had come with the various alien armor pieces and equipment and tried to place the unconscious man's face over the recording's images of the Mysterious Stranger that had come through the Conduit on the Citadel. EDI would be ale to run a facial recognition scan once she was ale to get a scan of the man and with a small smirk, the Cerberus Operative felt a small sense of accomplishment at their find. Surely the man they were helping was not entirely human. Her enhanced senses had picked that up almost immediately and if a plague she suspected was being manufactured by possible agents of the Reapers was affecting a supposed Reaper agent, Cerberus may have found an important new ally in their war against the monstrous machines that had destroyed the Protheans and countless other species.

"_That all depends on if we survive this wonderful mess."_

Miranda mentally scolded her distracted thoughts as she pulled back, her biotics flaring as she brought up a barrier and moved around the corner again, grappling a Vorcha sniper and sending the alien into a wall before her SMG was trained on the staggering creature and ended its life. Shepard and Jacob quickly joined her while Lia attended to Revan's unconscious form and the Blood Pack that had ambushed them really stood no chance against three highly trained and well-equipped humans.

"Jacob, did Revan seem particularly… inhuman to you?"

Miranda took the break in combat to voice her thoughts to her fellow Operative and Jacob cast a quick glance over the battlefield, firing a single shot from his pistol into a flammable container, the resulting explosion and fire holding off a Krogan that was trying to reinforce the failing Vorcha defense.

"You got that too?"

Jacob spared Miranda a quick glance, catching the woman's expectant and blank expression before turning back to the battle and letting off a several quick shots into the Krogan as it charged Shepard's position.

"Of course you did."

Jacob commented as Miranda joined in on the trio's fire, making short work of the Krogan as it was riddled with Shepard's assault rifle fire, Jacob's incendiary rounds and Miranda's SMG bursts. Once the battle died down, Shepard joined his two companions and caught the shared look between the two at his approach.

"There a problem?"

Shepard's voice was calm, but the undercurrent of his tone promised a swift response if he didn't like the answer. He knew his two Cerberus companions thought he was wasting time helping Lia and Revan get to Mordin's clinic and in a sense he was but the delay was not so much that he would leave the two to their fate.

"Commander there is… an incident I think you should know about. It occurred nearly a month ago… when you were still being… rebuilt."

Shepard rose a brow at that. Much as he hated thinking about what had happened when he was _dead_, Miranda rarely brought up anything unless it was of vital importance.

"Do you remember that device I was working on when you came to speak with me after leaving Freedom's Progress?"

Shepard nodded, recalling the strange cylinder that Miranda had been obsessing over since the end of Project Lazarus. He'd been curious, but the woman's standoff attitude to his questions when he'd tried to get to know her initially had kept his treading lightly and he'd only asked professional and _safe_ questions instead.

"The Conduit was activated over a month ago. Odd since the Council and a Salarian STG Unit secured the one from Ilos. The only conclusion was that there are other Conduits left behind by the Protheans. A… man came through the Conduit and was subsequently processed and ordered to be terminated by the Council when it was confirmed he was carrying illegal weaponry in the Presidium and was artificially enhanced by small sentient machines."

This was all news to Shepard and the former Spectre felt a chill go down his spine at the Council's actions while at the same time he was perplexed as to the origin of the being that had come through the Conduit. The Reapers didn't know about the Conduit until Saren's vision from the Prothean Beacons on Eden Prime and Virmire.

Shepard flinched at the thought of Virmire. He'd left a good soldier and a friend to die there and even after two years, most of which he spent unconscious, he still couldn't get over Ashley's death. Still, he'd had to save as many as he could and Kaiden had been pinned down with several of Kirahhae's men and it was the numerically sound decision. Give up one to save a dozen. It still hurt to think about it and Shepard pushed the dark thoughts to the back of his mind, collecting himself as he voice his own thoughts on the matter.

"That doesn't make any sense. The Reapers didn't know about the Conduit until Saren… They'd have had to build one if they wanted to use it and it would have had to be aligned to the one on the Citadel. It would have to be from a Prothean source otherwise or a test by the Salarians."

Miranda nodded, failing to catch the approach of Lia as the quarian caught part of their conversation in her enviro-suit's audio-receptors. Nervously, Lia glanced towards Revan's unconscious form and ran a hand over her shotgun uneasily. She didn't want to fight the humans but she would if it meant protecting her companion. She'd made a promise to herself that she would help him and until he either no longer needed help or told her otherwise, Lia would keep that promise.

"My thoughts exactly, Shepard. The Illusive Man also believes the being's origin to be beyond our galaxy which would rule out the Salarians as the culprits. I'm beginning to believe this plague was manufactured, Commander and if that is so, only a handful of organizations would have the resources to covertly create and release it. The Collectors are one of those and if I am right… that would make the man who appeared through the Conduit a month ago an… outside player if you will."

Shepard crossed his arms, casting a quick glance and frown at Lia as the young quarian drew her shotgun and glanced around nervously as she crouched beside where he and Jacob had set Revan down. Doing a quick check of his surroundings, the former N7 Operative chalked it up to nervousness before focusing on the conversation again.

"What the Hell does this guy who came through the Conduit have to do with the plague?"

Shepard made a gesture of his surroundings to his companions, his voice clearly heard by Lia as she quietly spied on the conversation. She didn't know who the Illusive Man was, but most of what the human woman had said measured up with what she'd learned of Revan and his initial appearance in her galaxy. Had she known the humans were working for Cerberus, her next reaction would have been violent rather than relieved.

"I will need to run a facial scan of the man as he had shoulder-length hair and a beard at the time but if I am right then Mister Qel-Droma over there is the man who came through the Conduit then this plague affecting him would confirm that he is neither a Reaper agent nor entirely human. He could be vital to our efforts against the Collectors and the Reapers if this is true. The man's equipment that was recovered from C-Sec has shown a level of advancement that the best minds the Illusive Man has working for him have failed to grasp in its simplest form. The lack of eezo in any of the devices is also… unheard of when you consider the power output the devices are capable of."

Shepard let that sink in for a moment, disbelief crossing his features as his blue eyes narrowed. If what Miranda was saying was true, the Council had tired to execute a man from a new species. A first-contact situation gone horribly wrong.

"Did he kill anyone on the Citadel?"

Shepard had to ask. To stop the Collectors who he was beginning to suspect were working for the Reapers, Even if they weren't, the Collectors were still a serious threat and he would do what was needed to stop them from abducting anymore innocent people.

"No, he hasn't killed anyone since he came here. I've been with him since he left the Citadel and I know he wouldn't harm anyone without a good reason."

The new voice drew the three humans gazes to Lia as she approached, her shotgun holstered at the small of her back as she nervously looked between them, hoping her trust wasn't misplaced with these humans. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if they harmed her companion, but she wasn't about to shoot them without just cause. Shepard glanced from the quarian youth to his companions, his expression pensive for a moment before he locked his gaze on Lia and offered her a reassuring smile. Miranda had nodded to confirm the quarian's statement and Shepard relaxed his guard, which had been up since they'd walked into the quarantine zone. Hell, since he first stepped foot on Omega and was accosted by Aria's thugs, a swindler and a Cerberus-hired mercenary that he was sure was going to shoot him if the pay was better on the other side. One of the reasons Zaeed was on the Normandy _settling in_ and not on this particular mission.

"Well… I guess we've got a doctor to visit and a first-contact with someone from another galaxy to see to."

Shepard's companions relaxed and the Commander moved back to Revan's unconscious form, lifting the man with Jacob's assistance and continuing on to Mordin's clinic. He still had a Salarian to recruit and a quarantine to break. Hopefully Doctor Solus had a cure or it would be a long time before any of them left the quarantine zone. He wouldn't risk bringing the plague out of Omega, let alone these slums with what he'd seen of it so far and Commander was sure the Illusive Man would _investigate_ the plague and come up with a solution if his investment in Shepard was lost because of the Commander's refusal to leave the slums until it was safe for all species and not just humans.

Aria T'Loak wasn't kidding when she said not to get Mordin started. Once Shepard's group had arrived at the clinic and the Salarian had seen Revan's unconscious form held between the Commander and Jacob, there was no stopping to get a word in edgewise.

"Human? Affected by plague? Impossible! Others would have shown signs of plague, none in weeks. Perhaps a different disease? No, no. Symptoms too similar, reactions identical to Batarian and Turians to plague. Deficient immune system? Extensive medications required if the case, none available within district. Possibility. More information required."

The Salarian spoke his thoughts aloud while Miranda and Jacob exchanged glances and Shepard merely looked on in disbelief. Lia was listening to the Salarian intently, shaking her head and trying to speak up as Mordin scanned Revan's unconscious form and stared in shock at the readings.

"Genetic variance from humans over twenty-five percent! Impossible! No species aside from Asari able to reproduce with other races! Genetic experiment? No, cellular decay too pronounced. Subject contains both human DNA and an unknown contributor. Aged nearly thirty human years. Predates human expansion through Relays. Unknown mineral detected in bloodstream… Nanites? Fascinating! Repairing damage from plague to subject. Plague spreading faster in response. Confirms intelligence behind design of plague. Who would have resources? Off subject, more scans needed to confirm cure isn't danger to subject."

Shepard had been following Mordin's rambling and jerked in surprise at the mention of a cure. Speaking up, Shepard interrupted Mordin's train of thought as the Salarian typed away at his Omni-tool with a frown.

"Wait, you have a cure?"

Mordin ignored Shepard's question, continuing his scans of Revan before frowning at the results.

"Odd. Variance in scans, unidentified organism hidden in subject's genetic code. Small… too small for normal scans. Serves no purpose? Unlikely. Possible reason for genetic bonding of unidentified DNA? Still doesn't explain subject's origins. Speculation, unimportant. Unidentified microbes unaffected by plague. Current cure viable for subject, administering now."

Mordin quickly took a syringe from a nearby tray, stabbing the needle into Revan's jugular and depressing the injector. The reaction was immediate. Lia made a noise of protest, Jacob and Miranda both palmed their weapons and Shepard looked on with a confused and slightly incredulous look.

"Gah! What the Hell!"

Revan's reaction was much more violent. The former Jedi Knight jolted violently, his entire body overcome with a massive spasm before he sat upright with a shout of surprise, his brown eyes glowing golden as he panted heavily and gazed around him in a slight daze. Spotting Lia, Revan forced his breathing to calm and absently rubbed his neck before he turned his eyes to the Salarian staring at him with a curious look.

"I feel… better."

Lia was sagging in relief while Mordin quickly ran a scan and looked on in surprise as the unidentified microbes he'd detected in the man worked with the cure flowing through Revan's bloodstream, augmenting and accelerating the healing and recovery process to unheard of levels while the strained nanites in Revan renewed their attack on the damaged tissue left behind from the plague, mending the man at an almost impossible rate.

"Amazing! Even Krogans do not regenerate this quickly. Microbes augmenting healing process. Nanites responding with marked intelligence to plague remnants. Possibly sentient? Must know, how do you hold two species' DNA patterns?"

Revan continued to rub at his neck, frowning down at his body and how weak it had felt before. He was stronger than this, stronger than to be killed by a simple plague, yet he acknowledged that his expedient recovery was beneficial.

"My mother was a half-breed Taung from the planet Mandalore. My father was a human. The microbe you're talking about is actually present in just about everything though it is too small for most devices to pick up. That is a powerful scanner you have there, doctor."

Mordin smiled at the compliment, feeling a bit of pride in the praise his upgraded and personalized scanner received from Revan before introducing himself.

"Ah, manners. Forgive me. Mordin Solus, Doctor. Fascinating background, must know what is Taung? Have never heard of species."

Revan's demeanor changed quickly from polite to closed off and his expression darkened slightly as he stood slowly from the medical bed Jacob and Shepard had lain him on.

"Extinct since the end of the Mandalorian Wars… or nearly anyways."

Mordin's expression shifted as he gazed down at the floor and sighed, shaking his head.

"Wasteful. No species deserves extinction. Each has something to offer if only others would listen and accept different cultures. Sad fate, tragic."

Revan closed his eyes for a moment, drawing in a deep breath and trying to banish the horrific images of Malachor V shattering under the affects of the Mass Shadow Generator and watching his people and the soldiers that had trusted him with their lives die by the millions. Wasteful, yes, but entirely necessary to end the war. Opening his eyes, Revan merely nodded to Mordin's words, his eyes locking with Shepard's and flickering to Lia's faceless mask for a moment before returning to the Commander's.

"Shepard was it? I owe you a great debt for bringing me here and making sure Lia arrived safely as well. Whatever you need, just ask."

The statement from the other man sounded like an oath and Shepard frowned, shifting uncomfortably at the hard and unmoving gaze of Revan. Cerberus would want to question the man and despite their interests, Shepard himself had some questions to ask the man who was seemingly from another galaxy.

"Well, Revan. It just so happens I have some very important business at hand. Human colonies are being abducted by a race known as the Collectors."Mordin started at that, turning to Shepard and giving the nearby patients under his care curious looks.

"Collectors one of few who could engineer plague. Lack of human victims would indicate interest from Collectors in harvesting humans for unknown purpose. More information needed, but possible connection with plague and disappearances. Would like to help… but need to cure first."

Shepard nodded in understanding to Mordin's statement, waving his hand to his human companions.

"I'm working with a secret organization to stop them. If this plague is part of their agenda than it needs to end. We'd like your help, Doctor Solus. Yours as well, Revan… if you're interested."

Revan was frowning while Mordin went off on another tangent about a missing assistant and necessary information and after sharing a quick glance with Lia and seeing the young quarian offer an undecided shrug, Revan decided to take a chance, after clarifying what secret organization he was working for. He wanted nothing to do with the Citadel until he got his lightsabers back and until then he was able to understand the nuances of this galaxy's politics, Revan wanted to avoid exposure as much as possible. He'd need to program his nanites to broadcast human life signs and disguise themselves when he had time but until then, questions needed answers.

"Secret organization? I don't have to worry about being dissected or incinerated because of variant DNA or Intelligent Nanites do I?"

Shepard answered before thinking, believing honesty to be necessary if one was to trust who they were working with. Part of the reason he didn't trust Cerberus. Jacob seemed like a good man and many of the crewmen of the SR2 Normandy seemed like good and honest people who simply wanted to do something to make a difference when their own government wouldn't, but he'd fought Cerberus and seen enough of their experiments to have any delusions as to how good the people his crew ultimately answered to were.

"Cerberus. it's a human-run former black-ops organization that-"

The sound of a shotgun extending and a heatsink activating stopped Shepard's explanation as he turned to stare at the angry quarian pointing a shotgun directly at his head. Depending on the strength of Lia's weapon, the shot would likely be fatal if not catastrophic with or without his kinetic barriers and Shepard slowly raised his hands, quickly waving off Miranda and Jacob's immediate responses of raising their weapons.

"You are working with Cerberus! You Boshtet! I should kill you where you stand!"Lia turned to Revan, her voice urgent while Mordin had backed away, looking between the two opposing groups with indecision. He would act to avoid violence in his clinic, but until the situation was more clear, a proper response was diplomacy.

"Weapons unnecessary. Clinic, young one. Not the place for violence."

Lia was trembling with anger as she kept her weapon on Shepard for a moment longer before she signed and lowered the shotgun, her head bowing in shame as she thought of her reaction. All quarians knew of Cerberus' attempt to destroy one of their ships and the resulting deaths within the fleet. The fleet was family and it meant her own family, despite not being related by blood was murdered by Cerberus Operatives.

"That wasn't our Cell."

Miranda's interjection was unhelpful and Revan frowned at the violent reaction from his companion, surprised at the fire he saw in her demeanor. Obviously it was more important to the quarian than the casual disregard the woman had addressed the situation with and Revan palmed his SMG thoughtfully, ignoring the tensing of the Cerberus Operatives.

"Lia. They're telling the truth."

Lia glanced at Revan, her body motionless for a moment before she reluctantly retracted her shotgun and secured it to her back. Shaking her head, Lia made a move to storm out of the room before remembering her promise to help Revan.

"You can't ask me to work with them, Revan. I won't betray my people!"

Revan shook his head, pulling his hand from his weapon and moving to Lia's side slowly, using the Force to calm the young woman before he spoke his own thoughts on the matter.

"They have connections. Information we- information that I need. I need my armor and my weapons back. Especially my mask if I want to get back to my own galaxy. They'll know who I need to talk to, who I need to kill if necessary to get it all back."

Shepard cast a glance to Miranda, seeing that the woman was not going to offer anything and made a quick jerking motion of his head to Revan as he lowered his arms. Miranda rolled her eyes at the Commander's conscience, sighing heavily as she offered Revan the incentive he needed.

"Actually… Mister Qel-Droma. Cerberus was able to recover your… belongings from C-Sec security shortly after your escape. I- I don't recall a mask being on the manifest for the crate but the items have been placed under by supervision and I can… have them returned to you for your assistance in-"

Revan was across the room and had Miranda's throat in his left hand in an instant while his right was held out and an invisible Force held Jacob and Shepard in place. Even Jacob's biotics were unable to work as a screaming, blinding pressure built in his head as he tried to resist Revan's powers and Revan leaned in to Miranda's personal space, his face inches from the Operatives as he spoke in a low, harsh tone that despite her training and experience, terrified the young woman.

"You will not dictate to me what is done with my own property. You will hand it over freely or die horribly, is that clear?"

Something was pressing at her mind, compelling her to agree and Miranda could only nod feebly, her face pale as Revan applied slight pressure to her neck, his fingers not actually adding the pressure, but his very thoughts.

"Wise move."As quickly as the violent, overbearing presence had come, it had vanished. Two Cerberus Operatives gasped for breath while a former human Spectre rubbed at his head and warily eyed Revan. Lia had watched the display in surprise, never having seen Revan act so violently and Mordin was entranced with the sight, his quick mind racing with the possible explanations to the near-palpable yet invisible power Revan wielded so easily.

"We have common goals. The plague and the quarantine. We end both and kill anyone involved. That includes the Collectors if they are truly the ones responsible for its release. I was General to a galaxy-spanning armada, Warlord to a race of beings so powerful it would send any I've seen since coming here to your galaxy fleeing in terror. You do not and you never will dictate terms to me. I am helping you because we have common interests. Do not take me for a tool you can wield at will or someone you are capable of being dishonest to."

Shepard moved to stand between Revan and Miranda, giving the former Jedi Knight a hard stare and a tight frown. Whatever the Hell had just happened was different form anything he'd experienced, including biotics and his entire body was screaming at him to get out of the other man's way. He couldn't though, it just wasn't who he was.

"As long as you're working for my crew, you answer to me. You step out of line and we leave you here. I don't care who you were before you came here or what you can do. You want my help you toe the line and say yes sir, do you understand me?"Shepard ignored his rain screaming at him to turn tail and run and got right in Revan's face, his synthetically-enhanced eyesight catching the murderous look that flashed across the man's face before it smoothed and Revan's eyes locked with his own. The two men stared each other in the eyes for several tense moments before Revan smirked, respect entering his eyes as he stood at attention and offered an alien salute, his closed right fist crossing over his chest and resting over his heart.

"Aye, Commander."

Shepard kept his gaze locked on Revan's before he came to the conclusion that the other man wasn't going to look away first and relented, fixing his eyes on Lia's mask.

"Miss Vael nar Ulnay. I am not Cerberus, my name is Commander John Shepard and I am a former Council Spectre and Alliance N7 Marine. I worked with one of your kind to stop the rogue Spectre Saren two years ago… Tali'Zorah vas Neema, formerly nar Rayaa. I also provided her vital information on the Geth that she aided me in recovering for her pilgrimage and I understand your mistrust of Cerberus. I myself am responsible for ending many of their illegal experiments and I hope you understand that I have nothing but respect for the Migrant Fleet and the Quarian people. My only reason for working with them is to stop the abduction of innocent human colonists by the Collectors. I am certain you can see why I would be compelled to work with them when the Alliance and Council have failed for months to do anything over these attacks and abductions."

Lia reluctantly nodded her agreement with Shepard's eloquent and long-winded explanation of his mission and she shared a glance with Revan, seeing the Mandalorian-raised former Sith Lord nod reassuringly to her to confirm Shepard's honesty.

"Then I suppose if you have Revan's help you have mine as well. If it were my people suffering, I would do what was needed and I respect your honesty and your reasoning, Commander. Please forgive my… reaction earlier at hearing who you work through. Cerberus is an enemy of the Flotilla and I couldn't trust them with my- my friend."

Revan rose a row at Lia's use of the word friend in regards to him and the former Jedi Knight shifted uncomfortably, stopping when he caught sight of Miranda smirking at his discomfort.

"_Bitch."_

Revan muttered to himself, sneering slightly at the woman before shaking his head and glancing at Mordin. The Salarian had been watching the interactions of his guests in silent fascination, cataloguing their responses and reactions mentally and observing them, making his own conclusions as to the people he would be working with once the plague was taken care of.

"Might I suggest we… get this plague taken care of, Commander?"Shepard turned from Lia to Revan, offering a neutral nod to the man and still trying to shake the unease he felt at the shift in the man's personality. It was going to be an interesting day.


	7. Chapter 6: Breaking Quarantine

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 6: Breaking Quarantine

"I am not going in there."

Shepard cast a glare at Revan as the former Jedi pulled his head back from around the corner of the corridor leading to the environmental controls for the quarantined section of the slums. The Vorcha had shut down the slum's life support and ironically the cure Mordin had created would need to be filtered through the air ducts and out across all sections of the slums to be effective.

"Why the Hell not?"Revan cast a glare back at Shepard before typing out a quick sequence with his Omni-tool, ducking back around the corner and coming back, several well-placed shots grazing the edge of his enhanced kinetic barrier.

"When I was training as a boy, my instructor would call this… well, cause for a SFG."

Revan quickly brought up a blue-white hologram of the corridor he'd just looked down, the alien appearance of the hologram drawing curious looks from his companions as he typed at his Omni-tool, highlighting the sniper positions he'd spotted.

"I may have a shield on me, Shepard; but I'd prefer not being shot by a sand-sized projectile moving at near the speed of light. I may be fast, but I'm not that fast."

Shepard frowned as he glanced at Lia and then Miranda who both shrugged at his questioning look. Jacob decided to voice the question on all their minds.

"What the Hell is an SFG?"

Revan glanced at his companions before sighing and pulling on his belt. A thoughtful look crossed Miranda's features as she recalled the odd device attached to the belt Revan had brought from his own galaxy.

"Stealth Field Generator. Makes you nice and invisible to waiting snipers so you can get up close and personal."

Thinking of the active camouflage many Alliance Scouts used that functioned along a similar principle, Shepard nodded understanding, looking between his squad and seeing that none were wearing the Infiltrator devices.

"Damn. Guess we'll have to do it the old fashioned way."

Revan nodded grimly at Shepard's assessment when he realized his very helpful suggestion was pointless with their current equipment layout. Drawing his SMG, the former Dark Lord of the Sith took in a deep breath and let it out slowly before casting a quick glance with Shepard.

"Cover, advance?"

Shepard nodded to Revan, motioning with his assault rifle for the man to get into position before he took in several deep breaths and shook out the stiffness in his joints. Revan waited until Shepard gave him a quick hand-signal and moved around the corner, opening fire with his SMG as the Commander broke cover and came around the corner, his N7 training kicking in when he realized what Revan had meant.

Shepard was on a raised walkway that overlooked a _street_, which would have been great if not for the fact that it was the middle point of a three tier chokepoint overlooked by a platform directly across from their entry point with a clear field of fire from what could only be described as excellent cover. By some odd stroke of luck there were crates stacked along the path Shepard was racing along as the vorcha sniper that had been concentrating on Revan's cover-fire spotted the former Spectre and began tracking him with its sniper rifle.

Hypervelocity rounds ripped up the walkway Shepard raced down and the Commander returned fire, his Assault Rifle roaring with a quick, controlled burst that sent the sniper scrambling for cover. Taking the opportunity, Shepard pressed forward, narrowly avoiding a second demise as he nearly stepped into a crossfire from two other snipers at other points on the walkway. Shouts and weapons fire echoed from the walkway below and the Commander felt sweat beading his forehead as his barriers collapsed the moment before he reached the cover of the railing overlooking the ground level of the section of the station.

"Not bad."

Jerking in surprise, Shepard stared in disbelief at the man crouched next to him, his head unconsciously turning to where he'd come from before turning back to Revan. Revan's expression was blank, though the Commander felt a hint of smugness in the other man's tone. Revan was eyeing his SMG is distaste before something attached to Shepard's N7 armor caught his eyes. Shepard looked down and spotted his combat knife, a diamond-hard ceramic blade coated in a layer of Teflon and titanium. Unconsciously grasping the handle of the deadly blade, Shepard shifted at the look Revan had given the weapon.

"Mind if I borrow something with a it more range and power?"

Pulling his hand from his knife, Shepard set his assault rifle on the ground and pulled his sniper rifle from his back. Checking the heatsink in the weapon, Shepard debated which weapon to part with before handing Revan the M-92 Mantis.

"Thanks."Revan glanced at Shepard expectantly, waiting for the man to give him some cover fire. The covering fire came when Miranda and Jacob tried a similar maneuver as Shepard and Revan had, the Operatives slowly stair-stepping their way between the cover from the scattered crates while Lia nervously glanced around the corner of the corridor they'd come from, her hand hovering over her Omni-tool. The quarian knew her shotgun would be useless at the range they were dealing with and double-checked her shields. The modifications she and Revan had made to their kinetic barriers would stand up to most weapons fire but she knew the entire point of the shields was to buy you time to get to cover, not to make you untouchable.

She wasn't wearing the right suit for combat. She had only come because Revan had gone and she'd sworn to Shepard she would help. If her suit was punctured from the battle or torn as she rushed to cover while the plague was still present…

"Keelah."

Lia sighed as she moved around the corner, deciding not to dwell on the negatives and jumping in surprise as her kinetic barrier flared, nearly failing from the shot that would have shattered her visor. A perfect headshot otherwise if it hadn't been for the modifications she and Revan had made. The Vorcha sniper dropped a moment later from a similar-placed shot from Revan's borrowed rifle. Shaking at the encounter, Lia pushed ahead and sank to the ground behind a crate on the right side of the chokepoint.

"Shepard, below!"

Jacob's voice was shouting to the Commander while Shepard shifted his fire from the sniper on the far right of the walkway above him to the Blood Pack approaching them from below. The Commander paused in his fire as he quickly replaced his spent heatsink and barely flinched at the boom that sounded beside his head as Revan turned the Sniper Rifle on the Vorcha front and center on the walkway overlooking their position.

"Reinforcements above. Who the Hell designed this piece of _osik?"_

Revan cursed the single-shot weapon in his hands as he operated the bolt to replace the spent heatsink. The weapon's recoil was irritating to the former Sith Lord and unlike the Aratech sniper rifles he'd trained with back in the Republic, this one was not semi-automatic and the recoil as well as the constant need to reload was throwing off his shots. Still, the power was preferable as it ripped through whatever armor the Vorcha were wearing and downed most with a single shot.

"_Osik_?"

Mangling the pronunciation of the word; Shepard glanced at his Omni-tool, making sure his translation program was still working before he came to the conclusion that it was some type of curse word in a different language from the one Revan was commonly speaking. A throwback to a first-spoken language, perhaps. Revan, with a frustrated expression glared at the Commander.

"Shit! You know, a piece of shit!"

Switching from Mando'a to Galactic Basic, Revan made a mental note to keep the spoken Mandalorian language to a minimum. This was a combat situation and not the place for a language lesson. Galactic Basic was the common human language of his galaxy and was easily translated as well as widely known by his galaxy's people. That very simple fact was the only reason he could communicate at all with the people in Lia and Shepard's galaxy. Galactic Basic was a language that was created to be simple, a slave's language that remained from the time of the Infinite Empire and their ancient, vast Empire.

"I need some cover up top, Shepard."

Revan was moving between reloading Shepard's Sniper Rifle, making sure they both weren't being flanked and wondering what the Hell he was sensing from Lia. The quarian's mind had gone silent a moment and he'd thought she was dead until a repetitive pattern had surfaced in his brief mental probe. Glancing back towards where Lia was huddled behind a stack of crates, Revan nearly fell over when a shot grazed his armor, draining his already taxed barriers and puncturing the hard suit of his Onyx Mark III Heavy armor. The blast was powerful, too powerful when the combined shots of the reinforcements fell upon the sniper that was wiping out their predecessors.

"Krogan charging!"

Miranda's accented voice shouted the warning and Shepard flinched as he dropped his assault rifle, forgoing the precious few moments he would need to retract and secure it and went immediately for his M-22 Eviscerator Shotgun that Cerberus had provided him. Turning, Shepard felt a catch on his shoulder and frowned down at the empty hilt where his knife had been a moment before. A blur of black armor moved from the abandoned sniper rifle to the charging alien. The massive Krogan was grinning viciously as it let out a roar and went to smash the human foolish enough to charge it.

Shepard could only look on in disbelief as Revan shifted around the Krogan with a speed he would never attribute to anything that required air to live. Revan's SMG was in his left hand while the right held the Commander's blade close. A point-blank burst from the weapon struck the Krogan's knee and it dropped to the ground hard, its armor rattling. It took only moments for the massive alien to recover but instead of taking the opportunity to spray more fire into the Krogan, Revan actually climbed onto the massive Blood Pack warrior's back and drew back his right arm, delivering a vicious and precise blow from the knife into the Krogan's eye.

Armor made no difference in such an unshielded spot and at the range Revan was working with, the kinetic barrier the Krogan was using was pointless. Howling as it thrashed, the Krogan's knee mended quickly, though not quickly enough for it to get to its feet before Revan drew back from his work and took the shotgun from the Krogan's hands. Firing a single blast into the unprotected face of the Krogan, Revan tossed the weapon and raised his SMG, peppering the upper walkways with rapid and precise fire. Part of the advantage to the recoil-modifications he'd spent precious days adding to the weapon.

Shepard saw the problem before Revan sensed it when a blue-white field of energy glowed around the prone Krogan.

"He's a Battlemaster!"

Had Revan known what a Krogan Battlemaster was, he would have understood the danger but as only a pit of rage stewed in the near-dead Krogan and biotics were so radically different from the Force, Revan only sensed the killing intent. Turning to stare at the Krogan that would have been dead if it were any other species and not a biotic, Revan reached for the Force and threw out his hand, a high-pitched whine sounding as the armor around the Krogan began to bend and fracture and it collapsed inward, crushing the beast as it howled and threw out a biotic assault on the former Jedi Knight.

The biotic warp struck Revan in the chest as the Force-attack pressed down on the Krogan, crushing the alien into a twisted pile of broken flesh bones and armor. Shepard looked on in nauseated surprise, his face paling as he looked from the crushed remains to Revan as the warp shredded the armor of his hard suit and dug in to his chest. The Force wouldn't repel the attack and Revan collapsed to the ground in pain, his eyes wide as he reached up with his hand and tried to pull the armor away. As the Krogan's life faded, so did the biotic assault, leaving a wounded and very surprised former Sith Lord in its wake.

"What the _Hell_ was that?"

Shepard could only stare at the open surprise on Revan's face, a realization striking him as he recalled Miranda's description of the man's technology. It lacked any form of Element Zero. No Element Zero exposure meant no biotics… which meant whatever powers the man used were not some super-refined version of biotics… but a completely different and alien form of abilities. An unknown quantity, Shepard noted as he too wondered what the Hell it was Revan had used to… collapse the body of the Krogan, armor and all.

"A Biotic Warp… what the Hell was _that_?"

Shepard motioned with the shotgun to the remains of the Krogan Battlemaster, ducking his head and securing his shotgun before he went for the discarded Sniper Rifle Revan had left after spotting the Krogan. Taking up position where Revan had been, Shepard's blue eyes scanned the upper walkway and spotted a combustible canister sitting on the walkway just begging to be shot. Lining up the scope, Shepard took the shot and was rewarded with a distant howl from a Vorcha as it fell from the walkway, flailing and aflame. Reloading, Shepard moved to the next walkway and put a round square between the eyes of another Vorcha while Miranda took careful aim with her pistol and finished off the last of the reinforcements from the upper walkway. Glancing back at Revan, Shepard saw Lia had moved from her cover when she saw Revan go down and the quarian youth was placing an application of medi-gel over Revan's chest wound, her body tense with worry and shaking slightly from the combat around her.

"Whatever that was is bloody fantastic."

Revan commented as the medi-gel sealed his wound and augmented the healing process his nanites and the Force had already started. As he sat up with Lia's help, Revan quickly picked up his SMG and Shepard's knife where he'd dropped them after being hit by the biotic attack and moved to Shepard's side, wiping off the blade and handing it hilt-first to the Commander. Shepard accepted the weapon and nodded to Revan as he returned the blade to its holster.

Five trained fighters, despite their varying degrees of experience were able to make short work of the Blood Pack on the ground floor. Having the high ground after dealing with the snipers was enough to turn the tide and after close to ten minutes of sporadic fighting, Revan was standing outside of another set of doors in another aged corridor, reviewing the layout of the next room holding the control section for the district's air processors. Shepard had loaded the files to his Omni-tool mentioning something called EDI with decidedly mixed feelings. Revan was simply trying to keep his mind off of the biotic attack he'd been on the receiving end of, wondering how the Force had no affect on countering it. Of course, it went both ways as neither of the powers were compatible and Miranda watched Revan carefully through narrowed blue eyes, a near-permanent frown on her lips as she mentally catalogued the man's unorthodox and strange abilities.

Scavenging from slain foes was nothing new to Revan. He'd done so for weeks on Taris as the Jedi's reformed puppet and frankly it was a great way to make money depending on how many people wanted your head. All you had to do was kill them and take or sell what they had on them. As a result, Revan was the slightly bloody and sweating new owner of an M-97 Viper. While much weaker than the M-92 Mantis that Shepard was still carrying; what the Viper lacked in power it made up for in sustainable fire. Low recoil and the ability to fire twelve shots per heatsink was preferable to Revan. When they were out of combat, Revan planned to upgrade the weapon's strength and tune down its recoil as he had with his M-4 Shuriken.

"We ready for this?"

Jacob's calm voice drew Revan from his thoughts of weapons modification and the former Sith Lord used the modified program he'd designed in his Omni-tool to draw out a viable battle strategy for assaulting the enviro-control station.

"Lots of spots for snipers to hide, Commander."

Jacob commented as he looked at the layout Revan had created. The former Alliance Corsair frowned when Revan began adding small glowing red points to the blue-white hologram to mark hostiles. The man hadn't bothered to visually verify the targets and hadn't initiated any type of scan from his Omni-tool.

"I sense about two dozen targets in the room. Four immediately center of the control room, twelve divided on the vent controls on each side. Five on the left and seven on the right. Another two directly above our entry-point on the upper walkway and three more to the right on the upper walkways."

Shepard voiced Jacob's concerns, elevating the Cerberus Operative's respect for the Commander while Miranda quietly listened intently, trying to get an idea of Revan's various abilities and how they could help or harm her purpose.

"Wait a minute, you sensed? You can read their minds?"

Revan glanced up from his work on his Omni-tool and gave a blank-faced nod to Shepard, his voice flat and serious.

"Depending on how strong of a mind the individual has, yes. Mainly I just pick up intent and surface thoughts. I can tell if I am being lied to and… if the situation calls for it I can … force them to answer truthfully to questions they would otherwise not answer. It has very unpleasant side-effects, but it is possible."

Revan marked two more contacts on his map of the battleground they would soon enter and frowned thoughtfully at the display.

"If I may, Commander?"

The politeness was new from Revan and Shepard gave a surprised nod, watching as the former Jedi eyeing the strange hologram thoughtfully before he began making a, in Shepard's professional opinion; fairly decent battle-plan.

"Lia, Jacob. You both have the shotguns so I suggest you stay by our entry point in this cover and watch the side-passages for reinforcements from the lower corridors leading to the fan controls."

Revan highlighted two points on his map that would give whoever was at those points good elevation and cover from the lower walkways. Lia nodded firmly, trying to get over her earlier fears and feeling a relaxing sensation wash over her. Had she not been watching him, Lia wouldn't have seen the small gesture Revan made with one of his fingers before she was struck with the calming energy. Stiffening slightly, Lia ran Revan's hasty explanation of some of his mental abilities to Shepard and his people and frowned at the thought of being manipulated by the alien, even if it was for a good reason.

"That's a sound plan, but it leaves us exposed from the four targets protecting the control room and the snipers on the right walkway."

Revan nodded to Jacob's assessment while Shepard watched on in silence, drawing his own plans for the battle and comparing them to Revan's. With their numbers and firepower, he likely would have come to a similar conclusion and the Commander's respect of Revan's earlier rant of being a General rose slightly.

"Shepard takes lead, assault rifle out to draw their attention while Miranda pinpoints the right-side contacts. I'll take care of the two above the entry-point and then turn my attention to the sniper positions right-side. Jacob, Lia; if you both enter and help Shepard take out the center defenders before checking the sides we should be able to down them before the lower units can respond. I need Miranda's SMG keeping those hostiles high-right thinking twice about popping out. Once I deal with the two overhead I can hit them fast and hard."

Miranda reviewed Revan's strategy mentally before she frowned.

"All this hinges on you getting those two above our entry point. We could just hold off and ignore them, move in and hit the hostiles on the right and the center before getting them. It wouldn't be so dependant on those two dying."

Revan shook his head at Miranda's suggestion, voicing the thoughts going through Shepard's trained mind as he assessed the Operative's new strategy.

"It would take too long that way. We'd be under fire from the units at the fan control systems lower left and right. Plus we couldn't move forward with those units behind us and no cover from the front to the hostiles there."

Shepard nodded and looked over the battlefield hologram for another moment in silence before turning his eyes to Jacob."It'll work. Do it."

Jacob offered a quick salute to the Commander and pulled his pistol, activating its incendiary round upgrade before double-checking his shotgun. He'd hit the center first them move to cover and watch the left while Lia did the same on the right side. Motioning to the quarian, Jacob voiced his plan and Lia nodded as she checked her shotgun and fidgeted slightly, wondering how long the strategy would hold out in a combat situation.

Not long, it seemed when the five entered the control room and the Vorcha leader of their foes turned and began ranting about the Collectors wanting the plague and them trying to stop it. Revan listened for about three seconds before he used the Force to drag the two snipers above the entryway from their positions and threw them violently into the center of the room, right into the Vorcha leader. The force of the Force-attack killed the two snipers instantly, crushing bones and armor and temporarily knocking the leader out of commission.

To his credit, Shepard only gaped at Revan's control of his strange powers for a split-second before he let his assault rifle do the talking for him, the vibration of the M-8 Avenger's fire strafing the vorcha fighters staring in stunned silence at Revan's entrance into the battle.

Five quick shots ripped through the air from Revan's position by the doorway and Revan moved with inhuman speed between the targets on the walkway overlooking the area to his immediate right. Three more shots were fired when Revan noticed two of the Vorcha's armor had protected them from his Force-enhanced speed-shots. Scanning the walkway with his scope and using the Force to get a _feel_ of the battleground, Revan shifted and stared at the walkways, squeezing off the rest of his heatsink's available shots and he reloaded, sneering as he took a shot from a vorcha sniper with a barrier and enough sense to time his shots.

Taking cover Revan considered his rifle for a moment before he shook his head, calling on the Force and pulling the sniper from its cover. The Vorcha hissed in surprise as invisible hands yanked it from its position and it flailed about uselessly before jolting as its barriers took three shots and failed. A fourth shot penetrated its armor, nearly severing its arm and a fifth ended the alien's life as it was dropped carelessly from its suspended position.

Lowering his sniper rifle and shifting to deal with a vorcha moving up from the lower right side, Revan smirked and nodded to himself when it dropped from a well-placed shot from Lia.

"Top cleared!"Revan called, retracting his sniper rifle and switching to his SMG. Shepard's voice called out that the center was clear and Revan turned to see the Commander advancing to the control room, Miranda at his side to bring the district's life support back online and release the cure.

"Revan, I could use some help here."

Spotting Jacob reloading his shotgun, Revan crept up to the other man's position, poking his head out and firing off four three-round bursts from his SMG before ducking back to replace his nearly spent heatsink. Getting a nod from Jacob that he could manage, Revan turned and was at a Force-enhanced sprint by the time his weapon was finished reloading.

Lia'Vael drew back from her firing position, her reloading her shotgun's spent heatsink and feeling a bit of pride at how her hands had stopped shaking. Spotting Revan moving to help Jacob, the quarian turned back to cover the ramp leading up from the lower level, failing to spot the Krogan that was approaching from the adjacent ramp. Keeping the Vorcha below in cover, Lia pulled back to reload and spotted a hint of red armor in her peripheral vision. Her heatsink spent and the replacement still in the pouch on her belt, Lia could only stare as the red-armored Krogan raised its shotgun, smirking viciously at her as it fired.

Snapping into action, Lia rolled out of the way, falling into the line of fire from the lower level as she quickly reloaded and backtracked up the ramp before leaning out and blasting the Krogan's last position, her shot hitting Revan square in the back as the former Dark Lord of the Sith stood over a twitching and prone Krogan body, his clenched fist coated in the alien's blood. Staggering as his taxed barriers fell, Revan dropped to the ground with a startled grunt, his vision darkening as he collapsed to the ground.

"Oh Keelah!"Lia looked between Revan's collapsed form and the vorcha still firing at her from the ramp below. The young woman's heart was hammering and she felt dread fill her at the misplaced shot. She'd only reacted, recalling the training she'd received before going on her pilgrimage and she had meant to hit the Krogan, not Revan. Partly the reason Revan had not sensed the danger and was bleeding on the ground.

"Revan?"

Firing at the Vorcha trying to take advantage of her misplaced fire Lia saw that Jacob's position was vacant and searched around frantically, her eyes spotting the man through her visor on the walkway below, oblivious to her plight as he moved with Shepard and Miranda to secure the fan controls on that side of the complex.

"Revan!"

Revan started from his daze, the taste of blood in his mouth as he turned in a daze to the visor staring down at him worriedly. Recalling delivering a Force-enhanced punch right into the brain of the Krogan he'd delivered, courtesy of a Hell of a lot of pent-up rage, Revan sat up slowly, hunched over and breathing heavily as he shook his head and stared down at his hand. He'd broken just about every one in it with that punch despite being strengthened by the Force and wearing a partially armored glove. Thinking longingly of his own armor and weapons that would have compensated for such a thing as a Krogan's remarkably thick skull, Revan reached his good right hand back, feeling the punctures in his armor's hard suit and the shattered casing that once held his kinetic barrier generator.

"Are you alright?"

Lia was breathless and Revan nodded shakily, fumbling with the latch at the neck of his hard suit. After a shot like that the armor was pretty much useless and even if it would provide some protection, it was still hanging half-off the former Jedi as he tried to stand, his blood smearing the railing he tried to use to stand.

"Just stay there, Revan. I'll- I'll get Shepard or- or one of the others to help."

Medi-gel could only do so much and she had no formal training or understanding of human or near-human anatomy. Revan shook his head to Lia's concern, standing to his feet and spitting a mixture of blood and saliva from his mouth with a half-groan.

"Have to hold this side so Shepard can get the fans running. Treatment is a moot point when we're all dead."

Several minutes later, Mordin Solus looked up from his work on an ill Batarian Shepard had told him about his rescued assistant the first to volunteer to retrieve the alien man. The vents were active again and recycled air began pumping into the clinic.

"Success! Must wait for effects of cure to spread, necessary to determine success. Also, need to wait for quarantine to be lifted, much speak to Aria once confirmed."

Turning back to his patient, Mordin smiled at the positive results flashing across his scanner's screen. Shepard had kept his word and Mordin would do the same. He'd need all the information he could find on the Collectors and while he waited for Shepard to return, he'd make a few anonymous inquiries with his old contacts in the STG over the attacks in the meantime.

Shari'a T'Nala made certain her pistol was in plain sight as she stepped from a transport onto Omega. Her only possessions aside from Revan's mask and the data pad Liara T'Soni had given her being a customized set of Serrice Council Phantom Mark X light armor that she'd only been able to afford after decades of honest work in C-Sec. The advanced red and black armor hugged the Asari's lithe frame as she cast a glance about the docking port before she slowly made her way to where her cousin would most likely be. Shaking her head as she entered Afterlife after being hassled by the Batarian Bouncer at the door, Shari'a spotted her cousin on a stage to her immediate left, gyrating to some unnamed music and dressed in a suggestive, formfitting outfit that glittered and drew attention to her feminine form.

"Tiana."

The dancer paused, glancing in Shari'a's direction and frowning at her older cousin before she smirked slowly and nodded to the Turian that oversaw the dancers working for Aria.

"Shari'a! Did you finally get bored sitting behind a desk on the Citadel and decide to live a little?"

Scowling slightly at her cousin, Shari'a shook her head slowly and pointed to the stage overlooking the ground floor of the club.

"You told me you could talk to Aria T'Loak for me get her to let me into the quarantine zone, remember?"

Tiana rolled her eyes and waved away her cousin's serious demeanor, trying to get her mother's sister's eldest child to relax.

"Come on, Shari'a, what's the rush? That place isn't going anywhere anytime soon and if you wait a few hours, Aria is going to pull her guards out. You'll only have to worry about the residents shooting at you then! If you wait a few hours I can go get my old Eclipse armor and we can teach a few Blue Suns or Blood Pack a lesson?"

Shari'a stared her cousin down, a frown firmly on her pale blue features before the Asari Maiden sighed, motioning to where Aria spent most of her time on Omega.

"I already put in a word. Don't mention the name Aleena and Aria will get you what you need."

Shaking her head at her cousin's attitude, Shari'a moved across the club, ignoring the annoyed frown that crossed her cousin at the brush off. She had important things to do and she'd talk to someone who knew how to keep a secret, not her airhead cousin. As she approached, Shari'a allowed the Batarian guard to scan her briefly before ascending the steps to Aria's loft, her expression neutral as she took in the features of the older Asari. Aria merely looked Shari'a over once before nodding to the vacant seat Shepard seemed to think was comfortable upon their first meeting.

"What can I do for my favorite niece?"

Smirking at Shari'a's discomfort, Aria leaned back, thinking of all the credits she'd save now that Shepard had helped Mordin take care of the plague issue. There were other things she could put those guards to work doing… more profitable things and she was sure the formerly dead Spectre wouldn't cause her any trouble.

"I need your help finding someone in the quarantine zone… _Aria_."

Rolling her eyes at the tone of her sister's daughter, Aria let out a bored sigh, eyeing the hardware the younger Asari was wearing with appreciation.

"Must have set you back quite a few credits to get that gear, Shari'a. You sure you can afford it now that you're unemployed? You know I could always use some more reliable talent here. It can be profitable and you can put that big detective brain of yours to use. What do you say?"

Shari'a shook her head at Aria's offer, knowing it was laced in mockery. She'd refused to work with Aria as a Maiden and that resolve had only strengthened when she'd entered the Matron stage of her life. Trying to remain stoic in the face of her aunt's _teasing_, Shari'a dug into her field pack, pulling out the data pad Liara had given her and bringing up the image the shuttle had captured of Revan after his haircut and shave.

"I'm looking for this man… It is very vital to… well, the continued existence of the Council that I see him…"

Aria had lost a shade of color to her skin and was looking from the data pad Shari'a had given her to one a guard had given her several hours before.

"His name is Revan, yes?"

Surprised, Shari'a nodded and frowned when she heard the next words, confused at the name her aunt spoke.

"He's with Commander Shepard and his little Cerberus dogs. He was part of the group that ended the plague in the slums. I had some spies down in there watching Shepard and his people and they reported some strange… abilities from this man. You sure you're willing to follow this one, Shari'a?"Concern had replaced cynicism and Shari'a nodded firmly, not even needing to think about the path she'd chosen. She had made her decision a month before on the Citadel and she wasn't about to give up when she was so close. Nodding grimly to her niece's response, Aria eyed the picture warily, trying to put the face to a man capable of causing the destruction and strange abilities her spies had told her of.

"Shepard rushed him to the Normandy after I lifted the quarantine, had that man being half-carried onto his Cerberus ship. He's actually coming here to talk to me about some vigilante he wants for his little mission against the Collectors. I'm sure we can arrange a meeting."

Shari'a leaned back into her seat, trying to relax as he aunt began filling her in on Shepard's mission. The more she heard of the Commander's mission and the more she learned of Revan, the more Shari'a wondered if she shouldn't just let Revan loose on the Council instead of trying to reason with him like she planned. They were really making a mess of things since Saren put the fear of Geth into them and the former C-Sec Officer socialized with her aunt as she awaited Shepard's return to Omega to recruit Archangel.

AN: Got sick/injured this week from… well, being run ass-end into the ground at work for the last few weeks so I took advantage of the extra time off. Hope you all enjoy how this story is progressing and my take on it all. Trying to make it… less ridiculous in terms of powers, but seriously, its Darth Freaking Revan here, not some random person from Star Wars. He is going to have a pretty high badass factor seeing as how he near-single-handedly took the Star Forge as a brainwashed and retrained Jedi puppet and bested Darth Malak, one of the best swordsmen of his time. Keep in mind Revan is still recovering from the plague and learning to use the tech/equipment of the Mass Effect universe. It's a learning experience and won't be easy for him, but he'd also a mechanical and military genius in Star Wars so it won't be impossible either.

Damned sticky B key, I hate this keyboard.


	8. Chapter 7: Recruitment

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 7: Recruitment

Lia'Vael nar Ulnay stole a quick glance towards Revan as she set the contents of her field pack on a table set up at the starboard side of the Normandy's transport bay. The man had simply been staring into the cargo crate Miranda had brought down, his unmasked face blank as he looked down at his belongings. Luckily, her shot had been absorbed mostly by Revan's barrier and armor, what little did get through only left superficial wounds that had healed quickly. Lia still felt terrible over the matter though, and had been trying to make the space Shepard had set aside for the two of them livable while Revan inspected his possessions.

"They took apart my bloody lightsaber."

Revan was frowning as he spoke, his eyes confused as he glanced at where Miranda was still standing with her arms crossed and her eyes locked with his own.

"We needed to understand their functions and the threat they posed to us… we met with failure at every turn. I suppose those efforts were wasted now that you are here."

Revan reached down into the crate, carefully collecting the cylindrical casing and the scattered components of the lightsaber Miranda had managed to take apart.

"I'm surprised you're still alive."

The Cerberus Operative shifted slightly at the honest surprise she heard in Revan's tone as he took a small case from his belt within the crate and set out the components on the table Lia was working over. The quarian quickly made room for Revan, glancing uncertainly in his direction as he began wiping off the components with an odd, slightly glistening cloth he'd taken from an airtight pouch on his reacquired belt.

"For a lightsaber to function properly… the refinement of the parts and their alignment has to be so precise, so finely tuned that even a computer or droid cannot calculate the necessary variable. If you'd managed to put this back together and it wasn't aligned to within a ten trillionth of an atom's width… well, you and everything within several hundred meters would have been atomized. Jedi and Sith use the Force to align the crystals properly with the necessary components. The Force… the Force will let us know when the adjustments are correct. We then create a feedback process that automatically disables the weapon if that changes. Getting it wet for instance or cutting one in half with disengage the energy loop rather than cause it to expand violently in a… well, nasty explosion."

Having seen firsthand how dangerous certain parts of Revan's armor were Miranda was not surprised by the destructive capabilities of the strange cylindrical device she'd taken apart, merely apprehensive when she learned how precise the weapon needed to be aligned to serve its proper function. By the term _lightsaber_, the Cerberus Operative correctly surmised the weapon was a type of energy blade, so when Revan finished cleaning the components and an invisible field of energy reassembled the components as they'd been when she first saw them, Miranda was unsurprised at the blue beam of energy precisely one meter long that jumped from one end of the tube. She was curious as to how the weapon would remain functional if its alignment was such a fine process and a simple jostling would throw off the functionality of it. As if reading her mind, which Miranda mused darkly was entirely possible, Revan answered the question in a tone most teachers used when instructing a student.

"A very precise dampening field is fed through the weapon. It acts in conjunction with a series of focusing lenses and energy cells that create a sort of nullified field. A trained Jedi or Sith can use the Force to properly align the necessary components in any scenario… It actually becomes almost second nature to us. Others use a stasis field to hold the component in place. It is still functional despite the stasis, but it makes the weapon more resilient. The stasis field is also necessary if one were to want their weapon to function underwater or in more… hostile environments. I still have yet to add that function to these weapons. When I initially crafted them… well, I wasn't myself."

Chuckling at some private joke humorlessly, Revan set the functional lightsaber he'd crafted on Dantooine while retraining as a Jedi on the workbench, his thoughts turning to the other lightsaber. Using the Force the saber rose gently into the air and slid into Revan's waiting hand. Wincing slightly as his left hand bumped the table, Revan ran his eyes along the elegant Sith designs of the weapon he'd received on Korriban during Uthar Wynn's trials. He could have made a much better weapon, but like the one the reprogrammed identity that had controlled his mind during his second search for the Star Forge had crafted on Dantooine, it was a part of him. He'd worn the weapon and used it with the Jedi weapon to kill Malak on the Star Forge. Thinking of his former Apprentice, Revan scowled darkly and tried to focus on the present. The Jedi had taken the decision away from him in regards to Malak and part of him wondered if there would have been a better way. He'd been a brainwashed tool at the time and once his real memories had returned, Revan had spent his time ensuring that the Jedi Council remembered he wasn't their pawn. He'd chosen his path when he'd gone to fight the Mandalorians. He just hadn't realized what it was until after the fighting was finished, by then it was too late to go back and he wouldn't have with the threat lingering on the edge of the galaxy.

"There was no mask in the inventory and I checked through the contents of the crate. All I saw were various armor pieces, a pressure suit, some simple black robes along with some leather gloves and boots that I assume you wear over the environmental-suit. I took the liberty of having them all washed for you, there was little damage to the items from your little swim in the Presidium, but I can't say for certain over your other equipment."

Revan nodded to Miranda, pulling out his wrist-communicator and frowning at it for a moment before he set it on the workbench, separate from his other things. With absolutely no modesty, Revan stripped of the Cerberus clothing that was provided to him after his brief stay in the Normandy's medical bay and Lia quickly turned away, her face flushing beneath her mask while Miranda merely tilted her head to the side and took the opportunity to peruse the man's visible physique and injuries. None of the scars she saw looked at all pleasant and after seeing the damage the man could unleash as well as take Miranda surmised that it would be a major wound that would down a man like Revan, especially if he was wearing his own equipment. The resilience tests she'd done with the unknown metal of his armor had shown a ridiculous amount of resistance to kinetic force as well as heat. It was unlike any type of metal she'd seen before and Cerberus was currently trying to decode the various elements present in the small sample she'd given them, trying desperately to recreate the strong armor that Revan was currently inspecting as he finished pulling a semi-loose set of black robes over his pressure suit.

"The only thing missing is my mask. It has a respirator that lets me operate in vacuum or in a poisonous environment as well as a data recorder with some of my more… colorful exploits on record. I suppose I could use the wrist-comm's power cell to adapt to a blaster. I'll need some more supplies for that, but I'm almost certain I can make a nice new toy for you, Lia."

Lia glanced up from the bulkhead, seeing that Revan was decent and shifted slightly, frowning as she cautiously approached the man. Seeing him in his armor, even without his mask was intimidating. While quarian blood was of a different color, Lia knew the significance of the colors that dominated Revan's armor and robes and cast a glance to see if Miranda was intimidated as well. The Cerberus Operative's features were blank, though a hint of curiosity was shining in her blue eyes as she watched Revan wiping down his armor before setting it in place and tightening the straps over his robes.

"Almost feel like myself again."Revan commented as he flicked his wrists, checking the blades that popped out of his gauntlets in satisfaction. The metal was crafted in the Mandalorian style and was both strong and resilient. It would take centuries of misuse and neglect for the armor to degrade and Revan wasn't too worried about water having too much of a detrimental effect. Even blaster fire had difficulty piercing the armor, the common strategy amongst Republic soldiers being aiming at the unarmored throats of the Mandalorians or simply cooking them alive in their own armor from sustained fire. Kinetic energy was still deadly against the armor and while it may not penetrate the armor, it would transfer the concussive force within the pressure suit and leave a mess behind if a rocket or enough disruptor fire hit the warrior.

"Yes well Shepard is planning the next Operation and wants us all to meet him near the cockpit once he's finished giving his report to the Illusive Man. If you're finished here?"

Revan quickly cast a glance at his discarded wrist-communicator before shaking his head and simply placing his Omni-tool where the other device would normally be. The new device did not encumber his movements and Revan smirked slightly before checking his personal shield generator. While an energy shield would be pointless against projectiles, a Mandalorian dueling shield would function well enough until he could adapt a kinetic barrier generator to his armor. Shepard had only given him time to recover from his injuries and get his old items functional again before he'd mentioned the urgency of their next mission. Apparently a vigilante the Commander wanted to recruit had gotten himself cornered somewhere on Omega.

"You sure you want to come, Lia?"

Revan ignored the sniper rifle he knew wouldn't attach to his armor, even if his cloak wasn't in the way and used a shoulder-style harness to holster his SMG. The compact form of the M-4 Shuriken nearly hidden by his black cloak. Pulling his hood over his near-bald head, Revan scowled slightly at the different feel of his shortened hair on the material of his cloak before pushing it aside and securing his lightsabers to his belt.

"I already promised Shepard I would help, Revan. I won't go back on my word."

Revan glanced at the quarian as she took his discarded sniper rifle and nodded approval. Better for her to keep her distance for the time being. She was trained to watch her own back, not work with a squad. Sniper duty would suit her and Revan already knew the quarian youth had steady hands. She would be a natural.

"Are you ready?"

Miranda's voice was impatient as she did a check of her pistol and SMG, her eyes flicking up to the two new crewmen. She had no doubt both would have something valuable to ring to their mission against the Collectors, but they were wasting time with all of the small talk and reassurances. It was beginning to grate on the Operative's nerves.

"Lets move."

Revan stated as Lia quickly grabbed a bandolier of spare heatsinks, slipping it over her shoulder and across her chest before she joined Revan and Miranda in the elevator. Revan crossed his arms as his left hand opened and closed slowly, testing the still-healing damage done by his assault on the Krogan before the former Jedi leaned against the bulkhead, waiting for the lift to reach the Normandy's CIC.

The Illusive Man glanced over the report Miranda had sent him with a frown, trying to decide what he thought over the new player Shepard's team had found on Omega. While more help would be preferable to the Collectors continuing their operations uninhibited, it was an unknown element and from the carious abilities Miranda had cataloged on the dossier for Revan, a dangerous one as well.

"Shepard I'm reading the report on your two new crewmen. The quarian has shown hostility to Cerberus and this… Revan is an unknown. I'm putting my trust in you on this Shepard, but I want you to know what you're dealing with."

Shepard merely crossed his arms while the Illusive Man typed in an unseen sequence into the console by his chair and the hologram filled with footage of Anderson and Bailey interrogating Revan before it changed to the filmed parts of Revan's escape from the Citadel. The Commander watched it all silently, a frown on his face before he shook off his unease before the Illusive Man offered some good advice for once.

"You may want to keep him out of the more civilized parts of the galaxy, Shepard. Chances are the Council and any number of Information Brokers will be looking for this man. It may add unnecessary complications to your missions… especially if the man is planning to wear his original gear."

Shepard merely shook his head as he signed, feeling tired suddenly despite the hours of rest he'd gotten since they'd returned to the Normandy.

"He's a valuable asset to this mission. One I think we'll need before all of this is over."

The Illusive Man took a drag of his cigarette, breathing out the smoke slowly before simply nodding to Shepard.

"Its your call, Commander. Just be careful with this one."

As the hologram died, Shepard rolled his eyes and glanced at the door. No one had interrupted the meeting, but he still felt like someone was listening in. Glancing at the console for the controls and seeing EDI's glowing blue _eye_, Shepard did a quick check of his gear before leaving the Communications room and spotting his aide, Kelly Chambers giving him a furtive glance.

"Something on your mind, Kelly?"

Jerking slightly, the Cerberus psychologist glanced towards the front of the CIC where Revan, Miranda, Lia and Jacob were standing by the airlock, the blank features of Revan casting annoyed glances towards Joker as the pilot goaded the man.

"Seriously, is that a dress you're wearing? I mean, if that's your thing man its cool, free galaxy and all, but still. Clashes with your image don't you think?"

Revan had not spoken a single word since leaving the lift, merely communicating with nods to Jacob and Miranda's greetings and debriefing. If he were a less patient man, he may have even tried to use the Force to silence Joker, but the Force had given the Dark Lord an impression of the Normandy pilot's weakened physical state. He wasn't going to go around terrorizing cripples when he could just ignore them, regardless of how obnoxious they were being.

"I mean, don't get me wrong, the whole red and black thing? Totally badass and the armor helps, but man, you gotta put some pants on or people are gonna get confused as to if you're a woman or not."

EDI chose that moment to interject, her scanners picking up the increase in blood pressure in Revan as well as the expression that had just crossed his face.

"Mister Moreau, General Revan is from a completely different culture than any we are familiar with. It stands to reason that their weapons, technology and beliefs would be different or unrecognizable from anything you are familiar with. Also, the _dress_ as you referred to, is similar to a Japanese style Hakama pants which is worn traditionally by both men and women as well as previously having been used by Samurai warriors as combat attire. The garments allow for comfort and mobility and are split into two distinct pant legs. Perhaps you should have Doctor Chakwas test your eyesight."

Flushing slightly at the taunts of the Normandy's AI, Joker ceased his taunting of Revan in favor of grumbling over talking appliances. Revan merely closed his eyes and took in a deep breath before letting it out. Drawing up his hood, the former Jedi Knight called on the Force to disguise his very unique presence. Unless someone was looking at him and trying to see it, they wouldn't notice his rather unorthodox clothing choice. It would simply escape their notice as an oddity.

"Commander… its about the new crewman you picked up. General Revan… I didn't really get the chance to speak with him but I've read the reports. He seems to be under a lot of stress and is separated from his own people and ways. There is a chance he may develop a type of disassociated sociopath behavior if this doesn't change. He has no real stock in anything in our galaxy and if his actions in the slums are any measure of who he is, he may not even realize his disconnection with the rest of the galaxy. He may simply categorize it into an unimportant nuisance and… with his powers, sir. I think he could really use a friend, sir."

Shepard glanced from Kelly's face to where Revan and Lia were inspecting each other's gear and frowned, wondering if their friendship was one-sided. As if reading his thoughts Kelly spoke up and addressed the concern nervously.

"I don't think Revan really sees Lia or… well any of us as people, sir. Just obstacles or tools. Its possible this is a coping mechanism he developed as a General to excuse sending others to die, but you can see it is unhealthy. Lia won't approach Revan over the issue, I'm sure. She's too shy, too polite and she feels responsible for the man at some level. I'd like to sit down and talk to him, sir… but I doubt he'd bother. He'd see it as a waste of time unless it came from someone he respected."

Shepard kept his gaze on Revan for a moment longer, commiserating on the time he'd spent working with the man in the slums and trying to get a bead on the man's personality. As far as he could tell, Revan was a fierce and intelligent fighter who could orchestrate a battleground with the skills of the General he claimed to have been and the Commander crossed his arms, grunting slightly as his muscles protested. It would've been nice to have a it more down time but from what he'd heard of the developments since going into the slums, his next recruit had gotten himself pinned down and was in trouble. The kind of trouble that wouldn't wait for bruises and sprains to go away.

"I'll keep that in mind, Kelly. I'd like to get a better feel of him before I try to have a heart to heart."

The seriousness in the Commander's voice shifted to sarcasm at the end and Yeoman Chambers straightened slightly, nodding to Shepard before she continued filtering through the messages the Normandy was receiving, prioritizing them and passing them along accordingly. Rubbing his head with his left hand, Shepard let out a quick breath, glancing at the lift as Zaeed walked out and moved to join the rest of the shore party at the airlock. The mercenary frowned as he eyed Revan and Lia momentarily before he shrugged and checked the heatsink on his M-15 Vindicator. He'd find out who the two newcomers were eventually. It was Shepard's show.

"Everyone set?"

Nods and affirmations were given to Shepard's question and the Commander cast a quick glance to Joker, ignoring the pilot's mocking salute before stepping out of the Normandy's airlock and into Omega's docking port. The smell hit him instantly, a mixture of rust, alien body odors and stagnant air. Clearing his throat slightly, the Commander moved on, making a beeline for Afterlife. He'd need to speak with Aria to smooth over the coming violence and get some advice on where to find the vigilante.

"Miranda, take Revan and Lia down to the shops. Get Revan a kinetic barrier if you can find a decent one and make sure we've got enough heatsinks. Jacob, Zaeed, you're with me. We'll get the go ahead from Aria and meet up in the lower level of the club. I could use a drink anyways."

Revan, Lia and Miranda all exchanged glances before the Cerberus Operative sighed and jerked her head in the direction of the shops, resigning herself to playing quartermaster to the new crewmen. Neither Revan nor Lia bothered upgrading their weapons and Revan opted out of a Kinetic Barrier due to time constraints, merely turning up the power on his Mandalorian dueling shield instead.

"You sure that is going to hold up to the punishment we're going to be facing?"

Miranda wasn't concerned, not really. Merely skeptical and curious of the alien device Revan had flashed her when she'd asked over his shielding. Revan shook his head at Miranda's comment, quickly bringing up a comparison of his old and no longer functional but still respectable kinetic barrier and the power output and energy deflection calculations of his dueling shields. Miranda rose a brow skeptically but decided it would be Revan lying on the ground bleeding out and not her and refused to comment further. Lia merely asked after a few odds and ends that Miranda gladly purchased, her thoughts turning to the upcoming mission.

"Shepard hasn't checked in since he went to speak with Aria. You don't think he ran into any trouble do you?"

Revan helped Lia secure her new purchases, his lips turning down in a frown as he glanced at the Cerberus Operative before reaching out with the Force and sensing Shepard's presence. The Commander seemed at ease, though what he was hearing from Aria wasn't sitting well with him Revan could sense Shepard was in no real danger from Aria. At least until he chose to fuck with her operation.

"Shepard's fine. Doesn't like what he is hearing, but no threat from any of Aria's people as of yet. We should probably head back there."

Shari'a T'Nala calmly sipped at her Asari honey mead, her pale blue eyes scanning the platform Aria dominated. The former C-Sec Officer's eyes narrowed as she watched the supposedly dead former Spectre speaking with her aunt and a frown played on her lips as she took in his companions. Two tall humans, one dark-skinned and carrying himself like a soldier and the other light-skinned with a hideous scar running along the side of his face were flanking the Commander. Taking in Shepard's appearance, Shari'a frowned at the _cracks_ in his skin where a faint orange glow ran beneath his skin. The scars looked painful and Shari'a winced slightly, remembering the story that had filtered through C-Sec regarding the first human Spectre's _death. _Even if he'd survived getting spaced, obviously Shepard had taken some serious injury in the intervening two years.

Movement at the club's entrance caught Shari'a's eye and she turned to see a human woman enter with a quarian behind her. The cloaked figure beside the quarian caught the Asari's eye and she frowned as she recognized the armor she'd confiscated on the Citadel from Revan. He'd made contact with Cerberus then. Banishing the worry that thought brought to her, Shari'a slowly finished her sweet drink, savoring its flavor for a moment before she stood, making certain her kinetic barrier was active before she summoned a biotic barrier around her. The feeling of static energy on her skin pushed aside the Asari Matron's misgivings before she slowly climbed down the stairs, ignoring the two accompanying Revan and going straight for the man.

Trailing behind Miranda and Lia, Revan frowned as he pulled his hood over his head. Someone had spotted him and was tracking him. While that wouldn't normally concern him given his surroundings, the face that this person knew to look for him and had pierced the Force-suggestion spoke of both familiarity with him and a strong mind. Neither of those options were favorable to Revan if he was dealing with a potential assassin and the former Dark Lord of the Sith quickly palmed the shield attached to his left arm just above his Omni-tool and discreetly removed the serrated diamond composite blade he'd talked Jacob into giving him from the Normandy's armor. It wasn't as flashy as a lightsaber, but then again that was the point. Shifting as he held the blade in a backwards grip Revan locked eyes with Shari'a causing the former C-Sec officer to pause in her approach. Miranda and Lia hadn't noticed the exchange and were ahead of Revan several yards. The former Jedi General allowed the gap to grow, not wanting to endanger his allies in what was going to be a likely messy matter.

"C-Sec."

Revan's lips curved slightly as he turned fully to Shari'a. The Asari Matron frowned at the look on the man's face, shifting her gaze to his companions a moment before she felt the edge of a blade on her throat as Revan swept across the few yards between them in an instant, his grip on the composite blade firm and practiced. Shari'a's biotic and kinetic barriers flared briefly before they failed at the precise pressure and Force-assault Revan subtly used as he rested the blade against her jugular.

"I know you're not human… but you're near-human enough for me to know putting a hole there won't look good for your continued existence. "

Closing her eyes and giving off a quick prayer to her Goddess, Shari'a carefully opened the satchel she had slung over the shoulder of her armor and slowly pulled out the cloth-wrapped item within. Revan tensed slightly, but the Force did not sense any danger in the Asari's movement and Revan's eyes moved quickly to where Shepard was, the features of an older Asari were watching his exchange with Shari'a closely and with concern.

"This is Aria's place. You don't bring your problems here or they become her problems and you become dead."

Revan ignored the Batarian that had crept up behind him with a pistol, his eyes locking with Aria's. Keeping his gaze locked, Revan made a quick gesture with his hand, flinging the Batarian into a stairwell and knocking him unconscious before he smirked. Aria merely rose a brow, her frown still in place as she held up her hand and red dots from well-hidden snipers illuminated Revan's vital points, covered or not in armor. Revan tapped the blade against Shari'a's throat before movement from Aria's balcony brought in a new player.

Shepard watched Aria pace as she outlined the situation with Archangel. What he heard he didn't like. Apparently the vigilante had gotten cornered and was at the other end of a lot of guns and angry mercenaries. As he inquired as to Aria's interests, a guard motioned to the defacto leader of Omega and Aria had turned, honest surprise crossing her features before she muttered an Asari curse and approached the balcony of her club. Frowning and exchanging glances with Jacob and Zaeed, Shepard moved to Aria's side, his eyes closing in annoyance as he saw Miranda glancing about with a pensive look, Lia palming her sniper rifle and Revan holding a well-armored Asari at knifepoint.

"Drop it, Revan!"

Shepard's voice was strong and confident, piercing the noise of the club and causing silence to fall over the various guards, dancers and patrons as all eyes turned to the Commander before moving to the cloaked figure holding an Asari hostage.

"I didn't come to fight you, Revan."

Shari'a's voice was barely a whisper and she felt the razor's edge of the blade shift to avoid slicing her throat. Revan glanced from Aria's cold features to Shepard's pissed off expression and slowly held out his arms, making it clear he wasn't going to attack. Several guards of mixed species approached the man but Shari'a's lifted hand stopped their progress. The guards all glanced at Aria before the Asari Matriarch nodded slowly to concede to Shari'a's judgment. Several of the illuminated laser dots on Revan vanished, though two lingered on his heart before flicking off.

"Why did you come here, C-Sec?"

Revan's voice was a harsh whisper, the memory of C-Sec's treatment coating his words in rage, though his calm countenance gave nothing away. Turning to face the former Sith Lord, Shari'a held up the cloth wrapping, a corner of the pale blue cloth falling away and revealing a weathered red and black mask. Revan's blade disappeared as quickly as it appeared, his right hand raising and brushing along the exposed edge of the mask.

"I'm returning what I- what was illegally taken from you. I also wished to- to apologize on behalf of my people for your treatment on the Citadel. I do not speak for the Council, but I hope that you can- can forgive me for having any part in that. I'm… I'm no longer a part of C-Sec and while my leaving wasn't completely my choice, had I known what they were going to do and who you were, I would have tried to stop it."

The woman's face was earnest and the Force told Revan Shari'a was being completely honest with him. Frowning, Revan glanced down at his mask for a moment before slowly pulling it from Shari'a's grasp and inspecting it briefly. Nodding in satisfaction, Revan pulled back his hood and adjusted the enviro-seal, pulling the rubber-like material over his head and then placing the mask carefully over his face. A series of clicks and hisses overcame Revan's hearing momentarily before he took in a filtered breath and chuckled, pulling his hood back over his head.

"That's much better. I don't think we've been properly introduced. General Revan Qel-Droma, former Emperor and Dark Lord of the Sith and Jedi Knight."

Holding out his hand, Revan's masked features tilted down slightly, the gesture disturbing Shari'a momentarily before she slowly reached out and took the man's hand. Revan was the type of man to commit fully to a set of standards. A Code really. While the code Revan followed was questionable at times, Shari'a's centuries of knowledge and early fascination with Justicars could understand the former Jedi Knight's motives. Even respect them on some level despite their horrific execution.

"Shari'a T'Nala, former C-Sec Officer. Currently… seeking alternate employment."

Shepard watched as Revan calmly spoke with the woman he'd been threatening moments before, his frowning features turning to see Aria giving him a bemused look before the Asari Matriarch shrugged indifferently and took a seat at her favored spot.

"I think my old… friend, Shari'a might be able to help you on your little quest against the Collectors, Shepard. They really made a mess of those slums… more so than they were and I won't lose any sleep if there are fewer of them in the galaxy. I think you'd better hurry though if you want to get to Archangel before those mercs do. There's a recruiting station just down there. I'm sure they won't mind a few extra guns. Just don't make anymore trouble for me."

Still frowning, Shepard glanced at Aria and thanked the Matriarch before moving to where Miranda was still holding the grip of her pistol and frowning,

"I recognize her, Shepard. C-Sec officer for two centuries at least, the one responsible for cataloguing and storing Revan's possessions on the Citadel during his initial arrival. I suppose we know what happened to his mask now… I'm surprised she was able to keep it from Cerberus and the Citadel."

Shepard shook his head as Jacob came up to his side, crossing his arms as he watched Lia cautiously approaching Revan and Shari'a as the two spoke quietly.

"The Citadel can miss a lot of stuff when they're not really looking. Hell, Sovereign was inside the damned Citadel and they're still in denial. We've seen what Revan can do, do you honestly think they'd waste their time trying to hunt down one man?"

Shepard frowned as he remembered his induction into the Spectres and his initial purpose.

"This sounds forebodingly familiar… Miranda, get Joker on the horn. I want EDI doing a full search of known Council Spectres and their current assignments. Chances are Revan or this Asari have a tail. If we're going to have a Council Spectre on our asses… I want to know about it."

Sighing in annoyance at to continued complications Revan was bringing to the Lazarus Cell's mission, Miranda nodded to Shepard and quickly activated her Omni-tool while Zaeed Massani moved from the stairs to Shepard's left side, palming his assault rifle thoughtfully.

"He's fast. Moved like a pro too. Got that blade right past that Asari's barriers before she could blink. You've got yourself an assassin there, Shepard. That or a fighter with some bad hobbies and anger issues."

Glancing at Zaeed's scarred features, Shepard sighed rubbing his buzz cut and trying to make sense of the new situation.

"I'm getting the feeling we're going to have a new hand on the Normandy. Suppose the firepower she'd bringing will be nice."

Jacob nodded towards the very expensive and heavily modified pistol sitting at Shari'a's waist and Shepard quickly grabbed the Cerberus Operative's arm, making a motion to Zaeed to follow him.

"We got some mercs to see about Archangel. Lets do it sooner rather than later. Miranda, I'm taking Zaeed and Jacob with me, make sure the rest of the squad is ready to go. I'll give you our position once we get to where Archangel is holding out. I think we'll be chancing it with more then three recruits if we want to get by the mercs and to Archangel first."

Zaeed nodded to Shepard's assessment, his good eye fixing on the Commander's frazzled expression.

"Probably for the best. More than that and they'll get suspicious. More men means less of a cut. Not merc style if you get my meaning."

Shepard eyed Zaeed warily before nodding slowly and stalking down to the recruitment center the Mercenaries attacking Archangel. All this posturing was starting to get on his nerves. Making short work of a wannabe merc who was just a kid with a gun, the Commander took his squad to the transport site, his Omni-tool subtly broadcasting a low-level signal linked directly to the Normandy and monitored by EDI. Hopefully Miranda could straighten out the situation in time for the attack on Archangel's holdout. Otherwise he'd just have to make due with the Mercenary and the former Corsair.


	9. Chapter 8: A Bloody Mess

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 8: A Bloody Mess

It felt like murder. To some degree, it likely was. Lowering the scope from his shoulder, Archangel brushed a hand against his sore shoulder: his senses on high alert as he drew in each breath quietly and with more care than most would take. Breathing was key, the Turian vigilante reminded himself as he leaned back into his position and lined up his sight. A twitch formed in the Turian's body as his scope rested on a man in dark gray armor with a red stripe running down the left arm. Immediately, the vigilante shifted his fire to a nearby Blue Sun Mercenary before returning his sight to the familiar figure.

"Shepard..."

The word was barely a whisper, and didn't even register to the Turian's helmet's microphone, but it was loud in the space of Archangel's helmet and he felt a smile pull on his mandibles. Switching briefly to a concussive round, the Turian took a shot at the formerly deceased Spectre, his grim smile growing as the human moved to cover, the two other humans with him following suite in a synchronized and familiar routine of cover and advance. It was so seamless, so practiced that one wouldn't have guessed it was the first time Shepard, Jacob and Zaeed were working together and it spoke of common training. Alliance Marine training.

"See you soon, Commander."

Commander John Shepard drew in a deep breath and peered around the crate he'd taken cover behind after Archangel had tagged him. His barriers had taken a beating there, a reminder of the need to upgrade his equipment when he could secure some decent funds from someone besides the Illusive Man.

"I take it no one bothered to tell that bastard we're here to help."

Zaeed's voice was a harsh whisper, loud in Shepard's ears and the Commander cut the mercenary a sour look filled with silent warning. The Mercenary nodded once and shouldered his assault rifle, his good eye focusing on the action around him. He wasn't stupid enough to go spouting off about the surprise Shepard had in store for all of his fellow mercenaries, and there wasn't anything else that needed saying.

Miranda Lawson had a headache. A rather large one at that as well. The Cerberus Operative was busy trying to get the new crew settled in and equipped while also coordinating with EDI for the most efficient and rapid point of entry to Shepard's position that would avoid the more obvious and established mercenary positions. It was, in essence a nightmare for the young woman and Revan and his little "squad" weren't making things easier for her either. The man was overconfident, even by her standards and he had the gall to try giving her orders phrased like questions to make them seem more like suggestions. Had she not been amongst the top three percentile in regards to humanity's overall intelligence, she may even have missed it. Miranda supposed her annoyance was more with the man's lack of contribution to the disorganized chaos that had erupted around them and she knew it was petty, but it was still damned irritating how the man just stood there, staring off into space.

The sound off dozens of boot steps filled the Normandy as the Cerberus crewmen prepared to assist Shepard. While the location of Archangel's stronghold prevented more than a handful of the ship's crew from taking part in the coming fight, that handful was just finishing their preparations, their attention on their weapons and armor while the crewmen and women prepared their transport and assisted in retrieving the necessary supplies for their likely short and violent mission. Still, amidst all the activity, it was the stillness of one that drew the attention of all the others, and the ire of the ship's unspoken XO.

Revan Qel-Droma had been a statue in the midst of the chaos that had exploded around him. His armor was already fitted to his body, his own design that had only been modified by necessity over time; in essence it was a hobbled together assortment of Mandalorian, Republic, Sith, Rakatan and Echani technology. The integrated Omni-tool added Citadel-tech to the list of equipment Revan's armor was compiling, along with a small modification to his envirosuit that surprisingly made it slightly more resilient.

What occupied Revan's focus, however; was the information scrolling across his mask's sensors as he reviewed the data stored there, specifically the information his mask's sensors had recorded during his fight with the Sith Emperor. Each time it got to the point in battle where the Sith Emperor assaulted him with Force-lightning, the mask's sensors would die, only to come back online when he was underwater. There was no data available that would help him find a way home and Revan calmly stored the files away, his hand lowering to the crate he was resting against, closing around the barrel of an M-96 Mattock assault rifle.

The new weapon had come courtesy of the Normandy's extensive armory and Revan eyed the unfamiliar weapon critically. It packed more of a punch than the previous assault rifle he'd since left within the armory but was only semi-automatic as opposed to firing full auto or bursts. It would take some getting used to and a combat situation was not an ideal backdrop for testing out new equipment. Amongst the other equipment on Revan was his modified M-4 Shuriken. Unlike the others, Revan used an old-style leather shoulder strap for the small submachine gun and a quick-release strap for the new assault rifle. Foregoing any other eezo-based weapons, Revan shifted the thick web belt strapped to his waist. A series of bandoliers rested there on his belt, loaded with spare thermal clips and had been modified to allow one of his lightsabers to be held to the belt with a quick-release locking mechanism as well as a modified carbon-composite blade that rested horizontal to the ground at the base of his spine. Miranda had commented on the dangers of his equipment becoming entangled with his battle robes and Revan had seen the point, though ignored the unspoken advice. The "rig" he'd set up for his equipment was a familiar one, though not exactly like the one he'd used long ago when he'd been under the guise of a Republic soldier. It worked and he was trained for it, so why bother with magnetic locks, holsters and bandoliers? In either case the Normandy's quartermaster was a fine craftsman and Revan was satisfied with his equipment.

"Operative Lawson, Shepard's signal has come through."

Miranda looked up from her omni-tool, acknowledging the AI's message with a mere nod that EDI's projector was able to pick up. Aria's information checked out and the location of Shepard's transponder matched the "pirate queen," as Joker called the Asari leader of Omega's information.

"Have Doctor Chakwas prepare the medical bay for casualties, the rest of you, get your gear in check and let's move."

Proficient in relaying commands, a leader that was offering orders in a manner that did not leave room for question; yet got things moving along. Sound advice, Revan decided as he did just that. Mordin was staying on the Normandy, his efforts better suited to discovering how the Collector's Seeker Swarms worked and Lia, despite her protests had been all but manhandled into the Normandy's Drive Core to deal with endless questions from the two lead engineers, Donnelly and Daniels, he believed they were called. Whatever their names were, Revan merely cast a quick glance to Miranda and gave a subtle nod of acknowledgement. He wanted Lia out of the way for the next mission along with their newest crewman, Shari'a T'Nala. It was nothing personal on Revan's part. It was actually the Illusive Man's influence that had led to the decision and had it not been for his own unique abilities, Revan had no doubt he would have been benched for the coming fight as well. As it stood, Miranda needed backup on the mission and a squad of fully-armored Cerberus goons tended to lack the subtlety this mission called for... at least to a certain point.

"Looks like it's just us..."

Miranda crossed her arms, drawing Revan's attention several inches below the edge of her uniform's collar briefly before he snapped his eyes up to meet the genetically engineered woman's pale blue orbs. Miranda offered a brief, humorless smirk as her eyes appraised Revan's preferred gear.

"I agree with your advice to leave the Quarrian and Asari out of this mission. Due to the lack of information on Archangel as well as Miss Vael and T'Nala, Cerberus cannot risk such a sensitive mission. Had Zaeed's credentials not checked out, I doubt the Illusive Man would've sent anyone other than me along but Shepard made a good point. We- I at least don't fit the mercenary image."

Revan grunted as he took his seat heavily, his armor's leather straps creaking and a dull thunk reverberating through the enclosed space of the UT-47 Kodiak Drop Shuttle. The secured assault rifle on Revan's gear bumped the former Jedi's knee before shifting against the seat and Revan scowled as he realized the shuttle's seats were not designed to accommodate his unique gear-set. Shifting accordingly, Revan found a comfortable position as he offered Miranda a blank stare through his mask.

"You may have biotics and a modified barrier, but that outfit hardly constitutes armor."

Miranda shrugged as she secured the safety harness in her own seat and the shuttle lifted off from the Normandy, weaving through Omega's "streets" towards Shepard's position.

"The added weight and bulk of armor would do more to hinder my abilities than benefit them."

Revan nodded his understanding, knowing that there were a number of Force Powers that suffered similar limitations. The conversation ended there as the Operative and the Sith Lord waited for the transport to arrive at Shepard's coordinates. Neither spoke of what they would find on their arrival and as the transport landed and released the two, a small sigh came from Miranda at what greeted the two fighters. It seemed Shepard's notoriously bad luck in finding people willing to shoot at him extended to his backup squad mates as well.

"Bloody Hell, keep your head down! I don't know how fast you think you are, Revan; but those shots are moving near the speed of light!"

Revan begrudgingly conceded Miranda's point, though silently as he slowly belly-crawled his way to the cover of a reinforced... well, Revan wasn't entirely sure what it was. It had likely held plants at some point, but had long since been abandoned. Grime covered the former Sith Lord's robes as he reached out with the Force, feeling the minds of the mercenaries and seeking a gap in their thought patterns to exploit. Acting as rear-guard for the advance on Archangel's holdout, the Blue Sun mercenaries that Revan and Miranda had run across only minutes after landing were well-trained and had a shoot first and ask questions later policy when an unidentified and heavily armed duo walk up to their perimeter. The reinforcements that were actually a six man squad moving to the rally point for the assault didn't help matters either and Revan had scarcely the chance to dodge the high-speed projectiles, his armor and shields taking a beating in the seconds it took to make it to cover. His subsequent attempts to exploit any openings were ruined when Miranda would shout to him, trying to take charge of the situation and unwittingly broadcasting their intentions to the enemy. They really had to work on their coordination before the next fight.

Pinned down by superior numbers with a half-competent opponent, Revan grew concerned with his own armor's limitations. Mobility was fine, but it lacked the full protection of a hardsuit. The gaps in the Mandalorian metal plates would present openings for the projectiles to exploit. That and the leather straps couldn't take sustained fire from small high velocity projectiles without snapping under the stress.

"Good thing I have my dueling shields."

Revan muttered, checking the charge of his shields and scowling in annoyance. Miranda was trying to use her biotics to create a distraction, but one of the mercenaries facing them was a biotic and it was a moot point. They were both pinned down and there was no way the two of them could break cover long enough to make a dent in the opposition without catching a few dozen founds in the face. Of course, Revan was one of the best fighters his galaxy had to offer and there was always a solution... usually in the form of wonderful balls of exploding death. Revan felt a smirk pulling at his lips as he felt a plan form in the back of his mind. The former Jedi reached out with his senses, searching the mercenary's minds and finding what he was seeking. Readying his assault rifle, Revan cast a glance to Miranda, making sure he had the Operative's attention before making a "wait" gesture with his hand that the young woman could understand. A second gesture followed and Miranda nodded as she closed her eyes and raised a biotic barrier. Clearing his mind of distractions, Revan made a small gesture with his hand and smirked as shouts of surprise came from several points within the enemies ranks.

Walter P. Franklin was once a Marine in the Alliance. After an incident in a night club with an Asari dancer that had unfortunately happened within sight of an Alliance Lieutenant, he'd been court-martialed. Not that it had mattered. The Blue Suns were always looking for men and women with military experience and he made more in a month working for the Suns than he did an entire year in the Alliance. Not to say his parents were proud of him, but he didn't really care what they thought. They'd died on Eden Prime with his sister and whoever else he called family nearly three years before. Drawing his thoughts from his long dead family, Walter focused on the task at hand. His squad was supposed to be loading up in a gunship to rappel down to where Archangel was and try to take out the vigilante before he cost them anymore manpower or money. The problem was, Archangel had some friends helping him and now there were even more people showing up out of the blue to help that Turian bastard. Unloading his entire thermal clip into the area around the woman that was trading fire with his squad, Walter blinked in surprise as a familiar beeping sound filled his ears.

"Grenade!"

The former Alliance Marine shouted a warning before diving to the nearest cover, his pulse racing as he covered his face with his hands. A moment later his eyes opened as he heard the tone, too close for comfort hasten its warning of the impending explosion. Too late, the soldier realized the sound was coming from his own grenade belt and with a wordless shout; Walter Franklin ceased to exist, at least in the form of something resembling a human being.

"Break and suppress!"

As Revan's voice came over the communicator in her ear, Miranda rose steadily, controlling her breathing as she drew a bead on her opponents, surprise coloring her features as the results of Revan's action. The surprise lasted only seconds before she took aim at a wounded Blue Sun mercenary and squeezed the trigger of her M-5 Phalanx. The heavy pistol round quickly ended the life of the stunned Batarian and even as she moved to her next target, Miranda was starting to regret her decision to bring the high-recoil weapon. Her next target obviously prioritized her injuries in favor of living, ignoring the pain from the shrapnel and bringing a lethal M-76 Revenant to bear on her.

Cursing as she dropped to cover, Miranda felt lightheaded momentarily at the effects of the projectiles on her biotic barrier which had collapsed at the last second. It was blind luck that her kinetic barrier hadn't failed right alongside her biotics and Miranda cast a glance to see Revan taking cover as well, a gloved hand rising to the side of his mask as he rubbed his fingers along a new and very visible scratch in its surface.

"New strategy, don't get shot."

Before she could fully comprehend what he was doing, Miranda saw Revan again break cover and watched in mute shock as he seemed to move like a blur, his assault rifle shifting between the two still-living mercenaries and ending their lives with lightning-fast kill-shots from the powerful weapon. Revan remained standing a moment, his weapon at the ready before he lowered it and nodded approvingly at the damage the new and in his mind, much more effective weapon had dealt.

"I like this gun."

Revan stated to Miranda, his head turning to a disturbance in the distance. Miranda followed Revan's gaze and cursed at the sight of an A-61 Mantis gunship rising from a landing pad in the 'complex' the mercenaries had set up. The gunship ignored the two as it made a beeline for the position marked on Revan's HUD that Shepard was at. Casting a quick glance at Miranda, the Dark Lord shared a nod with Miranda as both took off in a dead sprint for Shepard's location. Revan slowed himself to not gain too much of a lead on Miranda as he realized he'd underestimated the weapons and tech of the Citadel galaxy as he was beginning to call it. His armor could take the hits, yes... but the straps used to secure it as well as the body beneath the armor was much more breakable. A vicious bruise and a near-concussion were Revan's gift for his oversight and the former Jedi Knight felt a new respect for the power of the weapon in his hands as he traded shots with several Eclipse stragglers that had not taken part in the main wave of the assault on Shepard and Archangel's position.

"Watch out!"

Miranda's cultured voice sounded in Revan's ears almost as quickly as the warning in the Force and Revan turned, his brow furrowed at the slight delay in his motion. The Force was slightly off, there was no other way of putting it, so Revan pushed aside his concerns and simply raised his assault rifle to the threat, painting the wall behind the Asari biotic that had tagged him with her blood and brain matter. Dodging to the side, Revan avoided the deadly biotic warp that would have struck him if his abilities had not been on full alert. Allowing the adrenaline to flow through his body, Revan squeezed off seven precise shots as he ran, killing another Eclipse merc and causing the last to roll out of his line of fire and right into Miranda's. The Cerberus Operative made short work of the Salarian mercenary and joined Revan at the end of the 'bridge' that led to Archangel's stronghold.

"What do you think?"

Revan asked, his breath even despite the exhaustion that Miranda felt pulling at her own enhanced and fit body. Dulled though her senses were by the exhaustion of stress of the battle, Miranda still detected an edge to Revan's voice. Eyeing the armored Sith warily, Miranda quickly turned her attention to the chaos before them, trying to ignore the warning in the back of her mind. There were more pressing concerns than Revan's vocal inflections. The two-story stronghold had been hit hard and despite the respectable amount of bodies and mechanical parts lying around the chokepoint, it was very clear that the Blue Sun mercs swarming the position would soon overwhelm its defenders.

"I think we should be worried about that gunship. We can see what is going on before us... but I don't like surprises and that ship was moving in a hurry. Either to get reinforcements or to stage an assault. We have to trust that Shepard can handle this."

Revan nodded his agreement to Miranda's assessment of the situation as he shouldered his rifle and squeezed off a pot-shot at a Blue Sun straggler. The mercenary's already weakened barrier failed as did her armor and the faceless foe fell behind an obstruction as Revan turned and lowered his weapon in surprise. The Gunship was off in the distance, almost outside of the range of his mask's sensors and with a quick tap to Miranda's shoulder, Revan drew the operative's attention to the waiting threat.

Garrus Vakarian felt a grim sense of accomplishment at the sight of the massive Krogan lying on the ground before him. Garm had been one that had gotten away and it felt good to have the freak of nature lying on the ground before him, dead like so many of his victims. The chance to relish the death of the Blood Pack warlord was short-lived when Blue Sun mercs began rappelling down from the rooftop. Shepard's people were good, but they were having problems dealing with the sheer number of heavily armed and well-equipped warriors. The mercs were well-trained too, Garrus thought with a Turian version of a sneer forming on his lips. He really wish he'd gotten Tarak when he had the chance. Sighing mentally, Garrus lined the sight of his M-92 Mantis sniper rifle on a Blue Sun and fired, taking down the mercenary's barrier and breaking off a plate from the Merc's hardsuit. Shepard exploited the opening and drilled three precise shots from the M-15 Vindicator he'd picked up from Garrus' personal armory that had since been knocked over from the table and used as rough cover. A straggling merc fell to shot from outside of the building and Garrus ducked reflexively, his sharp eyes flickering as they scanned the battlefield for the source of the shot. It could have been a misfire from new hostiles and the Turian Vigilante wasn't taking any chances. Spotting two figures in the distance, Garrus raised his rifle to his shoulder, calming his breathing and lining his sights up on one of the figures.

"Shepard! We've got fire coming from the bridge."

Garrus managed to squeeze off one shot before the formerly deceased Commander had thrown himself across the room and thrown off his second shot.

"They're with me, Garrus."

The Turian frowned before looking back at where he'd fired in alarm. Spotting a figure lying on the ground, Garrus cursed mentally before his fears fled and he returned to the battle at hand. Shaking slightly, Garrus' next shot was off a centimeter and it took another to take down the mercenary.

"I'm sorry..."

Garrus muttered, his avian features twisted in remorse before he continued fighting. There would be time for guilt later.

"Are you alright?"

Revan remained lying on the ground, his vision clouded by stars and the taste of blood in his mouth. Sitting up slowly with Miranda's assistance, the former Jedi Knight pulled off his mask and ignored the beeping coming from his omni-tool. His shields were down and his mask, while intact had impacted his face with the full force of that unexpected shot. "I'm beginning to think it's my lot in life to be shot my allies."

Revan remarked bitterly, his mind dwelling briefly on Malak as well as Carth shortly after the Republic soldier had discovered his true identity during the quest for the Star Forge. Holding a hand to his forehead and rubbing it, Revan allowed Miranda to inspect his injury briefly before gently pushing aside her hands and replacing his mask. His skull was intact but his near-concussion had become an actual concussion thanks to that shot. Grunting with effort, Revan stood and looked up, his eyes locking on the empty space the Blue Sun Gunship had been moments before. A sense of dread rose next to him within the Force and Revan cast a glance to Miranda, losing precious milliseconds before the danger slammed into his senses, causing the former General to stagger. Still, overwhelmed and concussed, Revan reacted and his hand rose, the Force swelling around him before it focused into a deadly assault.

"ARCHANGEL!"Tarak bellowed across the loudspeaker in his gunship. The Turian turned from where he was killing a Blue Sun mercenary to see a deadly gunship rising ominously over the bridge where Shepard's other teammates were and Garrus could only stare in shock at the massive guns aimed directly at him. A body impacted Garrus, driving him down as rounds flew past him and the vigilante blinked in surprise, his eyes turning to Shepard and then up to where an almost deafening squeal of metal and machine was coming from. Growling as he covered his ears, Garrus felt a pressure on him and looked down at his damaged armor wearily. That had been close, too close and he should by rights be dead or dying. Pushing aside his concerns, Garrus rose with Shepard, their weapons turning to the gunship as they rose from cover before their weapons dropped slack in their arms. Shepard quickly recovered from his shock and turned to help Jacob and Zaeed finish off the Blue Sun Mercs still active within the building while Garrus looked down at the man he's mistakenly shot moments before. The Turian's sharp eyes detected a faint flicker of energy swell around the man before it fell away and the... for lack of a better term, 'ball' that was once Tarak and his gunship dropped heavily from the sky, breaking off a section of the bridge before rolling off and falling into the depths of Omega.

"Shepard... just where the Hell have you been these last two years?"

Garrus managed once the last of the mercenaries were dead. Shepard merely moved to the edge of the window and looked down on Miranda and Revan. Miranda offered up a mocking salute while Revan calmly removed his mask and spat what looked like a tooth on the ground. Shaking his head, Shepard turned and smiled at his former crewman, slapping the former C-Sec officer on the back before speaking amicably.

"I'll have to tell you about that sometime, Garrus. In the meantime, I've got a mission on my hands and I could use some help."

Eyeing the Cerberus emblem on Jacob's armor, Garrus cast a look to the battlefield around him before chuckling as he shook his head. Same old Shepard.

"We just wiped out the bulk of the Blood Pack, Eclipse and Blue Sun's presence here on Omega. To top that off you've already got the Geth, all those Batarians back in the Blitz, Saren and the Reapers... That not enough for you, Commander? I'm done here, Shepard so... yea I think I can spare the time. Just so long as you don't mind your shots looking sloppy next to mine."

Shepard smiled for the first time since seeing Tali on Freedom's Progress and nodded to his friend before a distant call from Miranda drew his attention to more pressing concerns. Namely, getting the Hell out of Dodge.

AN: I've been busy. Really busy. Work's been busting my ass all summer and I just haven't had the time or energy to write. I'll try keeping this story going but it's probably going to come slow from now on. Thanks for those of you who are still reading though, I appreciate the support and hope you enjoyed the update. You'll notice Revan was having some difficulties. The reasons behind that will come in the next chapter.


	10. Chapter 9: You Don't Know Jack

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 9: You Don't Know Jack

Commander John Shepard sighed as he read over the dossier for his next recruit. The former N7 Marine and Council Spectre leaned back in his chair, eyeballing the spacious captain's quarters the new Normandy offered with disgust before his eyes caught an illuminated photo. A pale blue Asari woman smiled shyly at the Commander and Shepard reached out slowly, brushing his fingers over the image of his former shipmate before shaking off his melancholy and turning his attention back to the file before him. Another Colony had vanished in the time he'd spent gathering forces on Omega and Shepard knew there wasn't time for anything but his mission. Much as he'd like to get back to the Citadel and as much as he wanted to see, hell even know Liara was okay, he had all of those who were lost to the Collectors to consider. It was selfish to divert the resources Cerberus had put at his disposal to anything less than the end of the Collector threat and Shepard continued to review the data, his fingers finding his omni-tool and accessing his personal mail.

Blue eyes scanned the extranet terminal briefly before Shepard composed several responses to the inquiries that were being made as to him still being alive. Anderson was getting a briefing more then an explanation and Hackett was better off not knowing. Spotting the name of his mother's ship, Shepard's fingers paused over the keys of his console and he sat back, rubbing his eyes wearily. This wasn't going to be a fun thing to explain.

"Hey mom, just wanted to let you know that no, I am not dead but I was up until that terrorist cell I ranted to you about two years ago recruited me to run an illegal operation in the Terminus systems."

Shepard's voice grew steadily bitter from its initial sarcasm and the Commander sat back in his chair with a huff while EDI's avatar appeared on the projector at the edge of his room, Shepard glanced at the glowing orb that stared at him momentarily before sighing and rising from his terminal. Closing the files down, the Commander decided to deal with the letters later as he moved to the lift to check up on his ship's newcomers.

"Are you alright, Commander?"

Shepard paused at the elevator door, glancing back at the glowing ship's avatar before sighing heavily. Much as he was wary of AI's, EDI sounded concerned and he was never one to be cruel, even if he wanted to be. His parents raised a better man than that and EDI, while a machine was also sentient and fell into the category of a "person" in his mind at least.

"I honestly don't know, EDI... but- thanks for asking."

EDI's avatar pulsed slightly before the Normandy's AI responded, an awkward amount of time for an AI to respond. Shepard mused it was likely for his benefit as EDI's voice echoed in his empty chambers.

"Of course, Commander. I stand by to assist."

The AI blinked out of sight and Shepard keyed in the sequence to seal his door while watching the lights dim. Shaking his head at the thought of an AI being helpful for the first time in the history of Council Space, the former Spectre entered the lift and selected the Engineering section. He needed a diversion that didn't constantly remind him of how much things changed in two years and he knew just where to look. It may have been nice to catch up with Garrus but that conversation had only reminded him of the years he'd missed and of what he'd left behind.

Shepard wasn't satisfied with the Illusive Man's answers to his inquiries over his former teammates and it took all his willpower to not just hijack the Normandy and hunt each and ever last one of them down. His death was outside of his control, but it was small comfort to think of what Liara had gone through. She'd only just lost her mother to Sovereign's designs and to lose him right alongside her...

The Commander fell back against the side of the lift, his Cerberus-issued clothes rustling as he slid down to the deck and set his face in both hands. Good God, Liara. It would have destroyed her. Shepard did not notice EDI's glowing avatar briefly appear, not the fact that the lift had stopped, yet remained sealed. He would have thanked the AI for giving him a moment, had he even been aware of it. The AI watched the Commander through the elevator's camera, uncertain of how to act but knowing most human males preferred to be alone with their grief. Diverting power from the lift, EDI sent a message to Chief Engineer Donnelly's station to let the crew know the lift was off-limits until further notice.

Shari'a T'Nala eyed Revan Qel-Droma warily as the man moved slowly opposite her, the near-human and Asari circling one another as they kept their eyes and senses on each other. A brief stint in Doctor Chakwas infirmary had gotten the former Jedi back to top shape and when Shari'a had first saw the man after they'd returned from retrieving Archangel, she'd been surprised by his... demand for lack of a better term to throw a biotic attack at him. She'd been wary of course, and was only using minor blows that were little more than training techniques taught to and used on beginners, but she'd seen the gleam in his eye and the Asari was old enough to recognize the unease dwelling behind Revan's stoic features.

Launching a very weak biotic push, Shari'a watched Revan's expression shift, his movements lose a hint of their grace and his eyes darken in some nameless emotion. The Asari waited until the expression cleared before continuing her attacks. Revan wasn't studying her techniques, Shari'a realized, merely studying the effects of biotics on his strange abilities and whatever the man was learning, he wasn't happy... At least, if his expressions were similar to human and Asari expressions.

"I'm going to use a very rudimentary skill on you, Officer T'Nala. Explain to me what you feel."

Frowning at Revan's formality, Shari'a drew a fairly weak biotic barrier around her and nodded to Revan as the former Jedi frowned at her, his eyes flashing briefly as he lifted his arm and made a small, almost brushing gesture with his hand. The Asari immediately felt her throat clench shut, bile and nausea rising within her as she gagged and doubled over. The sensation lingered for a moment before it passed, but the damage had been done and the Asari looked up at the black-clad man with a wounded expression before she saw his expression.

"Nausea, dizziness and headache?"

Revan's words were more a statement than a question and Shari'a forced herself to calm when she saw the clinical approach to the incident Revan took. He was studying the effects of his power on a biotic as well as the powers of a biotic on him and if his statement were any indication, they were most definitely not compatible.

"The same for you?"

Revan offered a single nod as he held out a gloved hand to Shari'a. The Asari accepted the hand, not realizing she'd collapsed to the ground and a flush of embarrassment covered her cheeks when she realized that Revan had used a "rudimentary" attack by his standards.

"Well now that that unpleasantness is out of the way, why don't we go see what Shepard has planned once we reach Purgatory."

Shari'a nodded shakily, still trying to get her bearings and wondering if Revan was as effected as she was by the negative effects of Force and Biotic powers crossing. If he was, he was hiding it well.

"That won't be necessary."

The new voice drew Revan's attention from his Asari companion to the human before him. Shepard's arms were crossed as he eyed the two curiously and Revan's expression soured briefly at the thought of Shepard sneaking up on him. Shari'a caught the look and was comforted by the thought of Revan's senses being affected by her abilities as well. Should he ever try to channel his darker urges, a great weakness had just arisen that would no doubt even the odds on that battlefield. Not that she hoped for such a confrontation, but s a former C-Sec officer, the thought was more reactive than anything.

"We just hit the Hourglass Nebula. Got about an hour before we hit the relay to Osun and then it's just a matter of getting to Purgatory. That's just enough time you Shari'a to get suited up."

Shari'a started slightly, but nodded to Shepard. She'd agreed to join the Commander's crew and while she had merely been thinking of how to make up for her and C-Sec's treatment of Revan, she and all in Citadel space still owed the Commander for his actions in stopping Saren and the Geth.

"Very well, Commander. I'll have my gear ready within the hour."

Shari'a offered a salute to the Commander and moved to the far end of the cargo bay, where her weapons and armor were laid out carefully. Glancing at Revan's carefully laid out gear, Shari'a glanced over her shoulder to see the former General speaking quietly with Shepard, the light fabric of his tunic sticking to his well-built chest as he pulled off his gloves and nodded to something the Commander was saying. Whatever thoughts she had on their conversation vanished when a Turian appeared at the edge of the cargo bay, his eyes finding hers as his mandibles flared in surprise.

"Shari'a?"Garrus bypassed Shepard and the man who'd only identified himself as Revan thus far to him and joined his fellow former C-Sec coworker. Shari'a felt a smile pull at her lips as she eyed the moderately well-equipped Turian before her. Garrus reminded her briefly of herself when she was a Maiden. Impulsive and passionate about his beliefs and not afraid to pursue what he saw as right with vicious focus. They'd bonded briefly, but their departments were in separate sections of the Citadel and their's was only a passing acquaintance. Still, it was nice to see a familiar face.

"I see Shepard has his hands full."

Garrus commented as the Commander and Revan squared off in some distant verbal exchange. Whatever was being said seemed to be making both parties equally unhappy and Shari'a felt a brief inkling of concern for the duo before she pushed it aside and rejoined the conversation with Garrus.

"We never knew what happened to you after you left C-Sec. It was only a few months after..."

Shari'a lowered her eyes from Garrus' face, knowing the destruction of the first Normandy was likely not something the Turian wished to remember. Garrus sighed briefly before shaking off his memories and offering a Turian version of a smirk.

"Suppose you've heard of Archangel?"

Shari'a felt a smile cross her lips as she and Garrus settled into a comfortable conversation of their lives over the past two years. The debate between Shepard and Revan continued, though their voices never rose and neither of the former C-Sec officers heard as they spoke of their common background and old friends.

"I want people familiar with law enforcement with me, Revan. This is also a Blue Suns facility and Zaeed knows them better than anyone. Shari'a can help out, especially since we'll need a Biotic if anything goes wrong, but I need you here until you get your equipment battle-ready. I saw the damage you and it took that last fight and I had to listen to Miranda's bitching for the better part of an hour. There's not enough time for the quartermaster to get you fitted with some new armor and besides, I can't take half the crew aboard this place."

Revan didn't like the idea of sitting out on a mission that would give him a chance to learn more about the Citadel Galaxy, but he also saw the logic in Shepard's decision. His armor wasn't exactly holding out well against the weapons and abilities leveled against him in this world and Revan reluctantly nodded to Shepard, his eyes turning to where Lia was sulking by one of the shuttles.

"I understand, Commander. I'll make sure my equipment is prepped for the next mission."

Judging by the sour look on Revan's face, the man had wanted to see Purgatory. Shepard felt a similar expression cross his face before he pushed it aside. He couldn't see why anyone would want to see the inside of a prison, let alone one with a reputation like Purgatory.

"Just speak with Miranda when you get the chance. I got a feeling we'll be needing you sooner than later."

Revan's nod effectively ended the conversation and Shepard glanced past Revan's shoulder to see half of the squad for the upcoming mission bonding over their weapons. Revan glanced back to see Garrus explaining his sniper rifle modification to Shari'a before letting out a small huff of curiosity. Remembering it was the very same modified rifle that soundly thrashed his senses, Revan turned to where Lia was cursing at her omni-tool rather colorfully. Shrugging as he realized he really had nothing else to do, Revan casually made his way to the flustered Quarrian, drawing the young woman's ire away from her wrist and to his slightly bruised face.

"They've practically drafted me to fix everything wrong with this ship you Boshtet!"

The anger in Lia's voice was not over what she'd actually ended up volunteering for, but more from her own concerns when she'd spotted the injuries Revan sustained in the battle against Omega's mercenaries. She knew enough to know Revan had something to do with her being stuck on the Normandy, the two Cerberus Engineers had said as much to one another in whispered tones that her suit's audio-receptors had picked up. Flushing slightly at the thought of them thinking she was spying; Lia'Vael Nar Ulnay had remained quiet, taking her frustrations out on her omni-tool. Opening and closing her sore hand, Lia winced slightly as she saw Revan's still blank look. He was either ignoring the fact that she was mad at him, or he was the most ignorant boshtet in the universe!

"That kind of comes with joining a new crew."

Lia's entire body stilled at the implications Revan's bland statement brought and all at once her anger fled her. She was of better use to Shepard keeping his equipment running, not fighting on some nameless battlefield and Lia lowered her head slightly in shame. Revan watched all this with a curious look in his eyes before it passed and he added in a slightly cheerful tone, at least for him.

"I've got to get some new armor and upgrades for my equipment. Want to come with? I could use a professional opinion."

Were it not for the fading bruises on Revan's face and the emptiness in his eyes, Lia may have forgotten why she was angry with him at that point. Still upset, Lia merely leaned back and crossed her arms, her Quarrian body language practically shouting her irritation. Revan seemed to catch the point and sighed heavily, rubbing his chin and frowning at the lack of facial hair there before he pushed aside the unfamiliar sensation.

"Those weren't street thugs, Lia; they were trained mercenaries. You may be out to prove you're an adult but believe me when I say I've seen that end badly... more times than I'd like to. It has nothing to do with your abilities. I know what you can do and I know now that it might have helped having you there, but there's something else I know. I know the value of experience. It was a mutual decision between myself, the Commander and this Illusive Man that seems to head Cerberus. You don't have to prove anything to me... but you still have a ways to go, training or not."

Shaking her head in annoyance, Lia stormed past Revan, glancing back at the man as he stared at her from his previous location.

"Are you coming or not!"

Revan allowed a small curve to form on his lips before he nodded and followed the Quarrian to the ship's quartermaster. Ignoring the muttered curses and what sounded suspiciously like an accusation of him being hopeless, Revan turned his thoughts to the new gear Shepard was making him get. Well... not making, so much as allowing. Revan planned to switch out his gear-set anyways and Shepard had merely expedited that eventuality.

"EDI please have Operative Lawson make the necessary arrangements with the quartermaster."

The AI's avatar popped up from a nearby projector and it blinked briefly, more of an action meant to assure its organic crew rather than one of practicality.

"Of course, General Qel-Droma."

Revan shook his head at the AI's need for titles but let it go. If EDI wanted to call him a General, she could. He was once upon a time anyways. His thoughts falling briefly to the fate of his own galaxy, Revan leaned against the interior of the lift, his eyes unfocused slightly before the sudden opening of the doors pulled the former Jedi from his dark thoughts. He'd put contingency plans in place in case he were ever killed. Hopefully, those plans would remain intact for however long it took for the Jedi to realize the threat of the True Sith. Whatever the case, Revan knew it was outside of his control at this point and the former Dark Lord of the Sith felt the edge of madness press down on him at the thought of all he'd done in the name of his "plan." There'd been an entry in a log he'd been reading on the Earth humans and Revan couldn't help but agree silently as he nodded to Miranda's scowling features.

_"The road to Hell is paved with good intentions."_Revan calmly allowed Normandy's quartermaster to make the proper measurements for an armored "hardsuit" to replace his own armor, scowling briefly at the thought of not being able to use the armor that had served him well in his own galaxy. Dwelling on his own galaxy, Revan stretched his senses into the Force, reaching along the back of his mind where the bond he shared with Bastila Shan should be. The link was silent for the first time since its formation. No hints of the Jedi's presence, not any whispers of her thoughts. It was still open, letting Revan know the woman was still alive, but the sheer distance separating them effectively silenced any emotions of thoughts coming from the Jedi. Not that they would have been entirely positive. Pregnant women tend to not like it when their husbands suddenly wake up a different person and decide to go off to war.

Sighing, Revan settled in to a chair in the armory as Jacob Taylor helped the quartermaster with his new equipment. He didn't miss Bastila, not really. They'd never actually had the opportunity to have a civil discussion and while he felt a bit of anxiety over the fate of the woman bearing his child, Revan knew he wasn't the man she'd fallen in love with. That Jedi atrocity was purged from his mind, only existing as a rudimentary set of memories and programmed reactions that allowed him to imitate the emotions of a normal sentient. Revan supposed he missed the warmth that would sometimes flow through the bond as Bastila looked at him and remembered who she thought he was, it was almost enough to make him feel ashamed of leaving her to face the Sith.

Pulling away from the dangerous thoughts plaguing his mind, Revan allowed himself a moment to reflect on his place in the universe at large. He was still a fugitive from the Citadel and there was really no better option than working with Shepard and Cerberus. Despite Lia's misgivings, Revan was not too concerned with the moral implications of Cerberus' work. Quite the contrary in face. The Illusive Man might prove to be an interesting man to meet and Revan eyed Lia thoughtfully before turning to see Miranda still scowling at being regaled to having to be there.

"The Illusive Man."

Revan's voice was only loud enough for the Cerberus Operative to hear and Miranda's face went blank a moment before a wary, slightly curious look crossed her features. Lia feigned ignorance, though her body had stilled at the barely audible words that Revan had spoken. Looking at the man out of the corner of her eyes, Lia frowned as Miranda stood, offering a quick explanation to Jacob before she and Revan left. Alone in a room filled with Cerberus crew, Lia's hands shivered slightly as she turned her attention to the generator she was working on to be added to Revan's new armor. Briefly, the thought of adding a failsafe in case of a future betrayal crossed her mind before the young Quarrian felt bile rise in her throat at the implications.

"I need to get out of here."

Jacob Taylor looked up from his datapad in concern as the Quarrian dropped her work and scurried off, a frown crossing his dark features before he pushed aside his concern and returned to work. Shepard needed all the hands he could get and making sure they were properly equipped and ready was just as important as having them. The Operative made a mental note to ask after the Quarrian at a later time, his concerns on the armor laid out before him and his crewmate.

In the FTL communication room of the Normandy, Revan stood calmly, his arms clasped at the small of his back while Miranda worked on keeping Joker's attention diverted from the coming conversation. It took EDI only moments to bring up the Illusive Man's comm line and Revan paused briefly to study the holographic display before him, curious but knowing there would be time later to study the new technology. Stepping inside the holographic field, the rest of the room vanished from sight and Revan found himself in a representation of a chamber on a space station orbiting a star burning white in the backdrop of the Illusive Man's form.

"General Qel-Droma, a pleasure to finally speak to you. You can call me the Illusive Man, I've been reading the reports from Shepard's team and I find myself at a loss in regards to you. You're an outside player and you've made some powerful enemies in the Council. No doubt they'll be even more determined when they discover you're working with a Cerberus team."

Both knew the formalities were pointless, though Revan allowed himself to fall into a familiar routine. He had been a Jedi, General and Dark Lord before so political pleasantries were nothing new to him...

"I've only received unsubstantiated rumors and biased viewpoints of both yourself and your organization. I know you have Humanity's interests at heart and while I've seen some morally objectionable reports and accounts of Cerberus' actions... I find myself unaffected."

Having read some of Kelly Chambers' report on Revan's psychological evaluation, the Illusive Man was unsurprised by Revan's lack of concern for the moral implications of Cerberus' practice. It was a double-edged sword though, and one the Cerberus Leader would wield with great care.

"Not all of those projects were sanctions by me and... their fallout and lack of results are regrettable. It has irrevocably damaged Cerberus' image. We hold the Alliance and Earth's interests at heart, though the methods may not always be right for everyone, its necessary."

Necessary. That was a word Revan used to tell himself a lot. It was necessary for Telos to burn, to frighten the Republic and the Jedi into submission or it was necessary to sacrifice a dozen ships to save a hundred, regardless of any personal connections to those who paid the price. It was always easier to say something was necessary than to think too deeply on the moral implications of it and, had Revan the inclination that Shepard did towards that subject, he may have voiced his conclusion. Revan Qel-Droma was not Jonathan Shepard, however and the former Dark Lord of the Sith allowed a small smile to cross his features, drawing a curious look from the Illusive Man. The Cerberus Leader's enhanced eyes could not tell if the gesture was feigned or genuine and for the first time since hearing about the Reapers, the Illusive Man felt a hind of unease. Before him was a man who could rip the thoughts from another's minds and crush a gunship into a twisted ball of debris. It was a risk speaking plainly with this man and one the Cerberus Leader hoped would pay off.

"Necessary."

Revan allowed a small hint of derision to enter his tone before his features fell blank, his eyes locking with the Illusive Man's.

"I've done worse. Far worse, in my time and I understand the importance of... necessity."

Again, a dark humor entered Revan's tone and the Illusive Man carefully schooled his features, remembering an old saying about a can involving worms and the dangers of opening it.

"I will continue to work with Shepard until this Collector threat is resolved... however, I don't see the need for our relationship to end with the Collector's destruction. I'm willing to... negotiate my services to your organization... I will of course need something in return."

Miranda leaned back in her chair in surprise at the look that crossed her employer's features. The Illusive Man was rarely nervous, but whatever Revan wanted information on was obviously something that was meant to be kept between the two. Whatever thoughts she would have had on the matter never came to fruition, however; as the Normandy shook violently, her Mass Effect Field preventing the ship from being shorn apart by the sudden turbulence.

"Report!"

Miranda glanced back to her console after her shouted command, seeing that whatever had caused the Normandy to shift so violently had ended whatever conversation Revan and the Illusive Man were having. Shaking off her concerns for more pressing matters, Miranda rushed to the cockpit as Joker's voice came over the ship's PA system.

"Massive explosion detected within Purgatory. The Commander's team has only been in there for ten minutes. I haven't been able to get through to him just yet but-"

Miranda cut off Joker's message, her own voice coming over the PA before it was cut.

"Keep bloody trying!"

Revan and the Illusive Man shared a glance, both men understanding one another before Revan offered a small nod to the Cerberus Leader.

"I'll go make sure your investment isn't wasted. Remember. Everything you have on it. Every last shred of research, every rumor, every image. I don't care how insignificant."

The Illusive Man nodded to Revan, keeping the smirk from his lips as he replied seriously.

"I'll see to it you get what you need, General Qel-Droma."

The communication ceased and Revan calmly moved to the Command Deck, his attention moving to the bridge where Miranda was ordering Joker around. Sidestepping Jacob as the former Corsair rushed past him, Revan continued in a more sedate pace, his hands coming to rest on the belt he wore. His SMG and Assault Rifle were both in the cargo bay along with his armor and aside from some lightly armored boots, his black Jedi tunic and trousers, he was bare except for the belt that held his second most deadly weapon and the ammunition for his others.

"Someone get me a Kinetic Barrier Generator."

Revan called, drawing uncertain looks from the Cerberus crewmen before Miranda nodded her agreement. Revan felt something strike his back as a slender form clad in an envirosuit brushed past him. Reacting quickly, the former Jedi caught the device and attached the modified Kinetic Barrier Generator to his belt. It wouldn't be as powerful without the enhancements a hardsuit would offer, but there wasn't time to worry about that.

"Aren't you going to get a firearm?"

Lia asked, an odd tone in her filtered voice. Revan ignored the tone, shrugging uncaringly.

"I have ammo and all the weapons I need. If I really need something I am sure there will be plenty lying around on the deck."

Lia paused in her advance towards the Normandy's airlock before she spotted Miranda eyeing Revan critically.

"Have guards stationed here to watch the ship, we're going to get the Commander."Joker nodded as a trio of haphazardly armed and armored Cerberus crew appeared, assault rifles in hand. Spotting Revan's lack of a firearm, Miranda held out her M-5 Phalanx heavy pistol to the former Jedi and Revan accepted the weapon, watching as the Operative drew an M-12 Locust from her waist. Testing his hold of the new weapon and remembering the Cerberus Operative's mental complaints of its recoil their last fight, Revan moved through the airlock of the Normandy and into Purgatory.

The problem became apparent the moment their stepped through the airlock. Blue Sun mercenaries were positioned at all access points, their weapons held at the ready, though thankfully their backs were to the Normandy. Revan wasted no time, his hand moving to his belt and pulling out of the waiting lightsaber. Moving to intercept the two guards, Revan slowed his approach when a familiar nausea flooded his senses. Someone was using biotics without a care as to where the assaults landed and despite the assaults not being directed towards him, Revan could feel the midichlorians within his body shifting at the biotic field poisoning the Force around him.

_"Two can play at that game."_

The Force answered Revan's call readily, the delay due to the effects of the nearby biotic field only noticeable to Revan as he lashed out violently. The biotic field flickered in the face of Revan's Force-assault, though it wasn't fast enough to prevent the unnamed convict from taking out the two guards.

"Cerberus!"

Revan felt Miranda and Jacob stiffen as the rather unimpressive figure of a short woman without hair and covered extensively in tattoos raged silently. The Force was filled with blinding rage and the tone the woman had used conveyed her care of the organization Revan had chosen to ally with. Warily, Revan raised his pistol and focused the Force, hoping to throw off the dangerous individual. Miranda and Jacob, able to feel the biotic energy emanating from the woman exchanged wary glances before their both raised their biotic barriers. Lia'Vael drew in a calming breath as she readied her shotgun, lowering it in surprise as Shepard, Garrus, Shari'a and Zaeed came sprinting down the corridor.

Surrounded on all sides, the convict spun back and forth between the two groups of four, outnumbered and unarmed. Cursing, the biotic prepared a violent assault when she suddenly felt an overpowering sense of nausea and the biotic field around her flickered, dying out in her distraction.

"The Hell?"

Jack muttered, unable to hear anything but the pounding of her hear in her ears. Looking up with a vicious sneer, the convict turned to see a man in N7 armor approaching her, his assault rifle in hand, though he was lowering it in his approach.

"Jack?"

Growling impotently, Jack turned a fierce glare to Shepard, causing the Commander to pause his approach of Subject Zero.

"The Fuck you want?"

Keeping his gaze locked on Jack's, Shepard slowly lowered his weapon, making a calming gesture with his hands.

"You look like you're in trouble. I'm here to help."

The Commander put on his best expression that he usually reserved for meetings with the Council or a Superior. As he expected, Jack scoffed at the former Spectre's expression and words.

"Shit... you sound like a pussy."

Revan caught Jacob stifling a laugh at the expression crossing Shepard's face before he offered his own opinion.

"This place is falling apart. You got a choice. Come with us, you learn to breathe vacuum."

Jack mumbled something uncomplimentary under her breath, drawing a startled look from Lia and a new glare from Shepard. Keeping his senses open for any more threats, Revan ignored the rest of the conversation, only allowing his guard to lower once the crew and the newcomer were all aboard the Normandy. Once he was alone in the restroom of the Normandy, Revan allowed his stomach to empty of its contents. Another biotic was on the crew and Revan briefly wondered if his Force powers could handle the effects of the super-powered crewmen in the midst of a battle or if it would cost them. Rubbing his aching temples, Revan decided to have a talk with the Commander over the squad placement. The effects of biotics on his Force senses were not something he saw himself getting used to in the near future.

AN: Just another Chapter I had backlogged that I wanted to post. Going to be out of town for the next week or so, so this is it for a little but anyways.


	11. Chapter 10: Zero Effect

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: Could make a tone of excuses and whatnot for the long delay since the last chapter but I won't. I just lost interest for a while. Thank the Mass Effect 3 and the more recent Old Republic trailers for this update. I think I'm going to try making the chapters a bit longer as the fic progresses, but rest assured this is _not_ a dead story. Hope you enjoy the update, the next one I promise will be up much sooner.

Chapter 10: Zero Effect

Element Zero was something entirely unique to the Citadel's Galaxy. The element had absolutely no mass, was easily harnessed into a light, long-lasting and effective power source for various generators and devices that were readily available to the Citadel and its adversaries. The discovery of a small Prothean data cache on Mars by humanity had propelled the species beyond their own solar system and across the galaxy within a few scant decades. Humanity had learned and grown so quickly due to the odd element that they stood as representatives of one quarter of the galaxy's slightly disputed but commonly acknowledged leadership. Element Zero had brought about a cultural and technological renaissance to humanity and all sentient races that had learned of and made proper use of it... and it had absolutely no use to Revan Qel-Droma. Quite the contrary in fact.

Baring his teeth in frustration, Revan slowly leaned back into the uncomfortably comfortable ergonomic chair at the back of the Normandy's tech lab, scowling slightly as his rage passed. Element Zero was a damned nuisance in his opinion. By no means a simpleton, Revan's technical capabilities were well known amongst those within the Galactic Republic and the Sith Empire as groundbreaking and in the case of a certain rust-colored assassin droid, downright terrifying. The quarter-Taung former Jedi Knight could practically breathe life into machines, once using the Star Forge's nearly endless resources to craft and build battle droids capable of tearing apart Jedi Knights and entire Republic Platoons; Starships and fighters able to literally fly circles around and obliterate anything the Republic's finest minds could field. The terror Revan's mechanical creations had unleashed upon the Republic as the Dark Lord of the Sith were only secondary to the effect the near-human had on a battle. Revan's genius spread beyond the mechanical, allowing him a higher learning curve over his contemporaries within the Jedi Order and later those on the battlefield.

Since coming to the Citadel Galaxy, Revan had felt his Force senses weakened significantly. Weapons, armor, starships, power generators, even the omni-tool on his wrist and the gravity keeping him in his comfortable seat were based on the previously unknown to him element. Through the effects of the Biotic warriors he'd faced Revan was beginning to understand that the Force, or more accurately Midichlorians were adversely affected by Element Zero and its side effects... namely biotics. The silver lining to this particularly dark cloud in the former Jedi Knight's mind was that the detrimental effects went both ways. A biotic could very well throw a warp assault on him and have him losing his lunch just as he could fling a bolt or two of lightning at the bastards with the same results. His sessions with Shari'a and the presence of Subject Zero and her abnormally powerful biotic capabilities had made that small fact abundantly clear.

The armor that lay in pieces before Revan, a patchwork bastardization of his Battle Robes and an Onyx Mark X medium combat hardsuit he'd requisitioned from Jacob following the events on Purgatory. Resting his hand on his chin, Revan's dark brown eyes flickered over the various components arrayed before him, the tittering hum of Mordin Solus in the background as the Salarian scientist worked on a captured Seeker Swarmer going unnoticed by the former Dark Lord of the Sith.

"Not coming along as you'd hoped?"

The cultured voice was slightly mocking and Revan resisted the urge to start as he slowly slid his eyes from his _project_ to come eye level with Miranda's chest. Raising a brow before doing the same with his eyes, Revan met the Cerberus Operative's pale blue eyes and allowed a hint of his frustration to show on his features, only visible to Miranda through a dangerous and slightly unhinged glint to the Mandalorian-born man's eyes.

"I am finding myself at a... crossroad of sorts."

Intrigued, though she did not allow it to show on her features, Miranda slowly approached Revan's workspace, her sharp eyes flickering over the man's armor and noting immediately the lack of an Element Zero power source. Furrowing her brow slightly, Miranda searched the workbench briefly before she spotted the Element Zero micro-fusion core in Revan's gloved and clenched hand. Noting the slightly defensive posture Revan had adopted in his seated position, Miranda paused briefly to reconsider her presence in the Normandy's lab before her pride pushed aside any unease she felt at Revan's presence. Unknown factor or no, she had business to discuss with the former Jedi Knight.

"Having a problem with the power core? I'm sure quartermaster could manufacture another... or perhaps your Quarrian companion can have a look at it?"

Revan remained silent, his features darkening slightly as he held Miranda's gaze. Growing uncomfortable, the Cerberus Operative crossed her arms over her chest, her eyes narrowing slightly at Revan's lack of involvement in their conversation.

"_If one would go so far as to call it that."_

A mocking voice that sounded irritatingly like her father echoed in Miranda's mind. Drawing in a calming breath, the genetically enhanced woman sighed slightly at the thought of her distant but certainly not missed father. The news she'd received of Oriana's location potentially being compromised had left her restless and she'd left the normally comfortable confines of her office to scour the ship for a distraction. Subject Zero, or Jack as the Commander insisted everyone call the unstable escaped criminal was a distraction that Miranda knew would have been vastly unhealthy, so she'd avoided the Engineering deck and Cargo Bay altogether, the low lighting of the Normandy's night cycle chasing her from the nearly empty Command Deck once she'd had her fill of Mess Sergeant Gardner's, in her opinion pointless babbling and Joker's snide comments. Shepard had been locked away in his quarters, getting some well earned rest and it wasn't quite time to be confronting Shepard over her sister's fate. She still had to confirm with Niket and check her own well informed Information Brokers before she would risk the Illusive Man's ire by diverting Cerberus resources for something he would view as personal and trivial.

Revan's expression had shifted slightly as his enhanced senses picked up on the internal conflict within Miranda. A single brow raised in surprise while a slight grimace pulled on his lips. He was being a bit of an ass and it might actually be worthwhile getting someone else's opinion, though not to the point of revealing a potential weakness. He could stomach the small Mass Effect cores of his guns as well as the armor, though it was becoming distracting to know the source of all the technological wonders the Citadel Galaxy's people had access to were clouding his senses.

"Element Zero doesn't exist where I am from. I'm trying to combine the aspects of your galaxy's armor with my own and the results are... less than impressive."

Having examined most of the items Revan had brought with him from his own galaxy, Miranda was intrigued. This would be a welcome distraction to the upcoming mission to Korlus and the headache a Krogan crewmember would bring.

"What exactly is the problem?"

Miranda's inquiry was met with silence as Revan rolled the small Mass Effect power source within his hand, his expression blank as his sharp eyes flickered over the hybrid armor before him.

"Element Zero is having an adverse effect on the micro-dampening field generator on my armor. The power output is all well and good, but there is really no way I can make the devices compatible. I'm trying to decide which one I need less."

Mandalorian armor was not simply plates of super-dense and strong metal, but a complex envirosuit mixed with a powered exoskeleton and inertial dampener that would allow Mandalorian warriors to survive plummeting through an atmosphere atop an exposed Basilisk War droid. Each suit of armor was in essence a small lifepod that allowed Mandalorians to take brutal punishment on the battlefield while surviving speeds and maneuvers that would otherwise liquefy the internal organs of most sentient lifeforms. As such, the Element Zero microfusion core would give off a small Mass Effect field that would disrupt the inertial dampeners, but at the same time offer power to the armor's kinetic barriers, exoskeleton and combat display systems. Consequentially, his battle robe's power source would instantly flash fry anything based on Mass Effect technology save for his omni-tool that was powered by a separate and shielded power source.

"I suppose it comes down to what you can do without. You're highly unlikely to come across any type of energy weapon not fixed to a ship and it's unlikely you'll need an inertial dampener unless you feel the need to fall from great heights or perform ill advised maneuvers on some primitive craft that doesn't use Mass Effect Fields."

Revan considered Miranda's input before shaking his head in frustration. He wasn't going to give up either his _homegrown_ shielding systems for something that only absorbed kinetic energy. His armor could take the physical damage the Mandalorian dueling shields couldn't deflect and his senses, while clouded; weren't entirely useless. It made him wary of trying to deflect or simply vaporize the accelerated projectiles with his lightsabers, but it wouldn't do to give up an advantage to his defenses that any of his potential opponents would be ignorant of.

"I've interlaced most of my own armor with this hardsuit, but there isn't much I can do to restore the energy my own equipment uses. Its power levels are too high for anything short of a dozen microfusion reactors to recharge in a battle situation and... Well, I'm not as familiar with your galaxy's technology."

Peering over Revan's shoulder at the equipment carefully laid upon the workbench, Miranda frowned as she considered the unknown power cells of Revan's alien devices and the apparent incompatibility a Mass Effect Core had with his shields and if her genetically enhanced eyes weren't deceiving her; the small fiber-like weaving of the undersuit she knew wasn't standard issue for the Onyx armor.

"I've handled most of your equipment, save your mask in the last several weeks. I couldn't make heads or tails of most of it, but this... this weave here, is it a type of armored enhancement? I can see it takes power from this aperture here but... Ah, it's a powered exoskeleton isn't it? And with inertial dampeners? I've seen the resilience of your armor firsthand, I don't suppose there is any way to reproduce your technology here on the Normandy?"

Revan sat back from his project, crossing his arms over his chest as Miranda absently brought up her omni-tool and did a quick scan of Revan's armor. In the days since Purgatory, Revan had been able to nano-weld his old armor over a very expensive set of Onyx Mark X medium armor and strengthened it by removing the standard issue undersuit and replacing it with his own version. With careful precision, Miranda slowly scrolled over the data before her, noticing the ingenious if unorthodox spot-welds Revan had done to keep the entire system functional. The only issue really was a power source and if her scans were correct, there was no way Revan would get what he wanted with the limited resources he had from his own galaxy.

"You're going to have to give up your shield generator power cells if you want to power this thing for any extended period of time. I can't think of anything besides a micro Mass Effect core that would even approach the power requirements these devices need... unless..."

Miranda's cool blue eyes slid to the twin cylinders Revan kept on his belt. She'd noticed the man carried the devices almost nonstop since she'd returned them and while she understood they were a type of energy blade, she could not see the practicality of having such a dangerously unstable and short-range weapon when one could simply shoot you to death long before you were within reach.

"You could scavenge one of the power cells from your _lightsaber_. I fail to see their practical use in any of the situations this crew is likely to find itself in in the foreseeable future. Perhaps a last-ditch defense if we're cornered or a lovely nuclear-powered grenade."

Revan scowled at Miranda's ignorance and the slight hint of mockery her voice took on in regards to his lightsabers. He hadn't used his lightsabers since his duel with the Sith Emperor and to be honest, he'd been trying to avoid using them to keep a low profile. There was nothing even remotely like it in the Citadel Galaxy that he'd seen so far and Revan drew in a calming breath before turning his gaze to the small Mass Effect Field generator in his hand.

"Can't have everything, can I? No that would just be too bloody easy."

Miranda slipped her eyes from her omni-tool to the former Jedi Knight. The previous indecision was gone and she watched in mild amusement as Revan forced the power cells from one of his lightsabers with a speed that belied the inherent danger in the act. The process took the former General no more than a minute and the power cell was cannibalized and used in tandem with the one salvaged from his defunct wrist communicator.

"Can't believe I'm bloody doing this."

Revan grumbled as he scavenged several components from his old Jedi lightsaber, his dark eyes flickering over the crystal briefly before his lips curved slightly as a thought occurred to him. Lightsaber crystals were horribly unstable when charged with an outside power source and only the carefully Jedi or Sith-crafted focusing lens could properly control its chaotic energies. The Mandalorian-born former Jedi knew his saber's dampening fields would fail almost instantly and the resulting explosion would easily cripple or destroy a frigate-sized vessel. Of course, Mass Effect-based tech came with the added bonus of a micro-dampening field that could potentially stabilize the crystal and create in essence a starship generator that could fit in the palm of his hand... minus the emitters of course, otherwise he'd merely be making an overpowered blowtorch that would superheat the air around him and kill... well, everyone. Now there was a thought.

"You wouldn't happen to mind filling out a requisition order would you?"

Revan asked after several moments of stillness and silence as Miranda inspected his work. The Cerberus Operative shut off her omni-tool and gave Revan a slightly imperious look. She would answer to Shepard and the Illusive Man, but in regards to the rest of the crew, she was the XO and they her subordinates. She had to make certain Cerberus' investments in Shepard and the rag-tag crew he was putting together would not only find the reason for the disappearance of the Colonists and put an end to it, but also not bankrupt the organization in the process. There were still the Reapers to deal with after all.

"What exactly are you planning on ordering- no, making with Cerberus resources?"

Revan was silent a moment as he rolled the pale blue lightsaber crystal in his hand, his eyes shifting over his new suit of functional armor and the old housing of his lightsaber.

"What do you think Shepard would say to weapon capable of taking out a frigate that he can carry around on that magnetic harness of his?"

Intrigued, though slightly skeptical of such a weapon being possible, Miranda gazed down at the blue lightsaber crystal before raising her omni-tool and bringing up her previous scans of the very same crystal during her studies of Revan's gear weeks before.

"I'll have to clear this with the Commander as well as the Illusive Man, though I fail to see how you'll manage this without a ship-sized core."

The former Dark Lord of the Sith used the Force to levitate his lightsaber crystal, his dark eyes reflecting the pale blue glow of the crystal in the dim lightning of the Normandy's lab as Mordin Solus made a random exclamation of surprise, drawing Miranda's attention briefly away from him.

"Is there a problem, Professor?"

Miranda's clipped voice echoed across the lab and Mordin looked up from his work, his bulbous eyes taking in Revan's armor before moving to Miranda.

"Problem? Many problems, Operative Lawson, many. Seeker swarms unpredictable, unaccountable. Invisible to sensors, difficult to track, just as difficult to evade. Much work to be done if countermeasure is to be developed. Biometric creatures, difficult to fool. Difficult, but not impossible! Must find solution, perhaps chemical agent to counter effects of stasis? Unknown, possible nanite infection cause of stasis in victims... nanites? General Qel-Droma, your body filled with nanotech, perhaps I could have sample?'

Revan drew his attention from the crystal to regard the scientist that had cured him of the plague on Omega. Honestly he was surprised the Salarian scientist wasn't carrying any of his nanites around after the injection he'd received in the medical labs in the quarantined district. Knowing the nanites would replenish themselves if necessary; Revan offered a careless shrug as he pushed himself away from the workbench, moving across the lab to the Salarian's side and offering his arm.

"Not like I can't spare a few hundred thousand of the little buggers. By all means, if it can help counteract this-"

Revan's eyes fell to the Seeker Swarmer and his face lost all expression. Staring at the small biomechanical creature, the former Jedi's eyes flashed gold briefly as his Force-senses _saw_ the creature beyond the veil of simple physical limitations. The creature felt like a drone, separated from a hive mind of infinite scope and the former Jedi didn't even notice the slight pinch on his arm as Mordin drew his blood and several hundred thousand nanites as well, chattering happily about the possibilities. Miranda seemed to notice the stiffness in Revan's posture once she looked away from the crystal that had fallen to the ground when Revan's attention had focused solely on the Seeker Swarmer.

"Revan?"

Revan heard the echo of his name in the back of his mind, but continued to focus on the Swarmer, his eyes glowing with Force-energy as he sought the source of the strange tremor in the Force the biometric creature gave off. It seemed to stretch across the galaxy, spanning on and on to the very edge of his senses before his body responded to the pressure and heat at his back and he snapped out of the Force-trance that had taken him over momentarily.

"Are you alright, Revan?"

Miranda's voice lacked the normal harshness and mockery it usually held as she stared at Revan's ashen features with concerned and slightly wary expression. Something was definitely off, but she had no way of knowing what and before she could try to pry any information from the former Jedi Knight, Shepard's voice sounded over her Omni-tool.

"Miranda, we've just entered the Imir system. ETA to Korlus is twenty minutes. From the chatter EDI and Joker have picked up and the Intel Chambers forwarded to me we're probably going to have to go in quiet. Jack may be a powerful biotic but I think we need a more subtle touch for this one. Make sure Lia's awake so she can help EDI and Joker monitor the frequencies these Blue Sun Mercs are using and see if you can't find Jacob. He hasn't been answering his comms and EDI says he's down in the armory doing god knows what. I don't want to disturb Mordin's research and last I checked Revan was hunched over his armor in the lab trying to find the answers to the universe so-"

Revan chose to interject that moment as his face regained some color. He needed to kill something... badly. What he'd seen in the primitive mind of the Seeker Swarmer wasn't something he wanted to dwell on in that moment and a combat situation would be the perfect distraction.

"My gear is set if you need me, Shepard."

Miranda frowned at the rudeness of Revan's interruption and from the pause on the comm line, Shepard was mulling over his own annoyance as well. After several moments, a barely audible sigh was heard over the line before Shepard finally responded.

"Revan you're on ground team with me then. We'll take Garrus as backup, might need his sniper rifle and we'll definitely need his tech experience. Miranda, keep Zaeed, Jacob and Jack on standby in the shuttle if we need some heavy hitters. You're in charge of the Normandy while I'm down there. Keep Shari'a and Lia close in case the Mercs try to hit the ship."

The channel cut before Miranda could voice her comment so Revan and Mordin were the only ones to hear.

"Obviously, Commander."

With a roll of her eyes, Miranda collected the list of items Revan would need for his project on her Omni-tool for later assessment and a mental note to clear it with both the Commander and the Illusive Man before she moved to the Command Deck, leaving Revan to don his modified armor.

With a care for detail few could match, Revan went about the task of removing his armor from its place on the workbench to slowly fitting each part over the black Jedi robes he wore while not on a combat mission. Mordin occasionally glanced in the former Jedi Knight's direction asking questions over the nanites that Revan calmly and dutifully responded to before he was suited up in his modified armor. A combination of the battle robes he wore as Dark Lord and a set of Onyx Mark X medium armor, the black hardsuit and combat skin beneath blood red plates of Mandalorian style armor made for a menacing, if more streamlined battle suit. Gone were the Kevlar-like fabric weaves of his battle robes and cloak, replaced by matte black hardsuit contours and harsh, battered segments of Mandalorian armor that still allowed the former Jedi ease of movement and the best protection two galaxies could offer against most small arms both galaxies' sentients had created to kill one another with. The added protective layer of Mandalorian dueling shields and Echani energy shielding made Revan Qel-Droma quite literally a walking tank. Donning his mask and shifting slightly to test his range of movement, Revan calmly attached his last remaining functional Sith lightsaber to his belt before adding heading to the armory to grab a heavily modified M-5 Phalanx heavy pistol the Normandy's quartermaster had cleared for him as well as several spare thermal clips and carefully placing them in the added pouches of his armor and belt. Casting a glance around the armory and spotting Shepard having a slightly personal-looking conversation with Jacob, Revan decided to forgo heavier weapons.

It was time to stop hiding his abilities amongst the nameless masses of the galaxy. If what he'd seen with his senses when they'd delved into the Seeker swarmer and its source was any indication, the Citadel Galaxy would need all the help it could possibly get. If that involved exposing himself to the Citadel and those who'd so quickly condemned him when he'd first arrived, Revan no longer cared. He'd finally found something worse than the True Sith. Hell, the True Sith were positively cuddly when put alongside the Collectors and their Reaper masters and no one deserved the fate the Reapers or their indoctrinated slaves were bringing to the Citadel, to their entire galaxy.

"We'll look into it, Jacob."

Revan broke out of his lost train of thoughts to see the Cerberus Operative thanking Shepard, though a short uncomfortable silence followed when both former Alliance Marines noticed their audience. Revan merely raised a brow, the gesture obscured by his mask before annoyance crossed Shepard's features. Gesturing to the red and black armor, Shepard gave Revan a slight glare.

"This is what you think when I say subtle?"

Revan calmly picked up a specially designed and highly illegal silencer modification for his weapon, making certain the device was clearly visible as he removed his M-5 from the magnetic hip holster he'd adopted for it and slowly screwed the threaded sound suppressor into place. Jacob's emotions were conflicted, though a hint of amusement shone in the Force briefly as a wry smirk crossed the former Corsair's lips and Shepard merely pinched the bridge of his nose in irritation. The three men stood in silence for a moment before Zaeed, Shari'a and Garrus all entered the armory, the trio pausing to take in the Commander's exasperation and Revan's new appearance.

"Shepard."

Garrus finally greeted, nodding to the Commander as his mandibles clicked in curiosity. Shaking off the awkwardness of the moment, the Turian made his way to one of the larger and consequently louder assault rifles he could find in the armory, causing Shepard to sigh in defeat before he reluctantly grabbed a grenade launcher from the heavy weapons rack.

"We can try for subtle Shepard, but you and I both know we're going to be shooting our way out of this at some point."

The former N-7 Commando relaxed slightly at Garrus' frank tone, fixing his various weapons to his N-7 armor and allowing a bitter expression to cross his features.

"I can always hope otherwise..."

Attaching the M-15 Vindicator to his hardsuit, Garrus glanced at Revan's light combat load as a Turian frown made its way to his scaled features.

"I know you're some weird kind of Biotic or whatever, but one gun?"

Revan glanced at the lonely pistol strapped to his magnetic hip holster before shrugging. If worse came to worse he could always use the Force to steal his enemy's weapons from them and the added weight and bulk of the heavier assault weapons would only encumber his... in Shepard's galaxy; unique abilities.

"I have some surprises for this one, Vakarian."

The Turian vigilante's eyes shone slightly at a private thought that Revan easily accessed through the vast Force powers available to his command. Archangel was obviously remembering Tarak's demise on Omega.

"Just Garrus is fine. I know I'd feel better if you had a stronger weapon. These are Blue Sun mercs on a training world we're dealing with. They'll have heavy armor and heavier weapons if Shepard's luck holds true."

An indignant "_hey!"_ was issued by said Spectre which both Revan and Garrus ignored as the two men exchanged smirks, Garrus' difficult to read through his avian features and Revan's obscured by a full mask.

"The radio traffic EDI has been able to pick up also indicates a number of rogue Krogan that the Blue Sun forces are battling. Perhaps at the very least a proper ammo modifier would be advisable."

The calm interjection of the Asari Matron drew a close to the ribbing between Garrus and Shepard, both men turning their attention to Shari'a as she finished attaching her weapons and securing her armor. A faint curve was evident on her lips as she eyed the men in the room, Zaeed having been the only one to think of bringing disruptor rounds, and only then out of habit. Armor was a bitch, but shields were worse in the grizzled mercenary's opinion.

"Right... I was getting to that."

Garrus finally bluffed, drawing amused looks from Shepard and Jacob while Shari'a merely raised one of her brows and fixed her former C-Sec contemporary with an imperious look. Garrus turned his blue eyes away first, sighing as he collected a shredder ammo modifier for his assault rifle.

"Just like old time, Shepard."

Remembering Ashley giving both of them a similar, though much more blunt dressing down before the mission to Therum two years before, Shepard allowed a smile to cross his features, the effect reaching his eyes as he shared a moment of camaraderie with his former Normandy crewmate.

"The fuck is this, squad bonding time?"

Jack's harsh tone cut through the armory, causing all of its occupants to case the powerful biotic former convict differing glares.

"You're on support, Jack. I want you with Zaeed and Jacob on the shuttle. Pack heavy and make sure you got something modded that can get through Blue Sun armor or stop a Krogan."

Scoffing at Shepard's advice, Jack none-the-less grabbed a vicious M-22 Eviscerator shotgun and an M-6 Carnifex pistol before charging a small ammo pack with a biotic charge, a vicious smirk crossing her features as the warp-ammo modification indicator lit up on her weapons.

"Fuck that Shepard, I'm coming with you."

All movement besides Jack's in the armory stopped, causing the ex-convict to turn an amused look towards the silent and blank expressions of her _crewmates_. The Hell with Cerberus and their cronies. The only reason she hadn't killed them all was Shepard and the files he'd promised her... that he'd actually delivered on. The expression on the cheerleader's face had been funny enough, but it wouldn't buy her loyalty. Still, something about the Collectors and some of the things she'd seen in a few of the unofficial files she'd stolen were disquieting to the former convict and Jack's amusement vanished as she thought of all those poor suckers missing on the colonies. Hell that could've been her if she hadn't been on Purgatory. The colonies in the Terminus systems were prime hiding spots for people like her.

"I made you a promise, Jack. I kept it. I expect the same in return. You agreed to join this crew and you _will_ follow my orders. You got a problem with that you can walk out the nearest airlock, whether we're docked or not. Are we clear?"

Jack had to admit, Shepard could definitely bring down his authority when he wanted to and she was rethinking her first words to the Commander on Purgatory before deciding to save face in front of the other crewmen and women. Rolling her eyes flippantly, Jack shrugged as she offered a neutral answer.

"Whatever _Commander_. I'll sit out this time, but you better get me some action before I get bored and start looking for a fight a little closer to home."

Miranda chose that moment to enter the armory, her blue eyes narrowing at the meaningful glare Jack threw her direction. Ignoring the unstable biotic, Miranda moved towards Shepard, grabbing a simple M-3 Predator and her M-4 Shuriken. A quick check of her kinetic barriers drew her attention away from her load-out and to Revan.

"I forwarded your requests to the Illusive Man. The next time we hit a friendly port, we'll have your items. Save the most important. That will take some time."

The Illusive Man had given her enough information on the _agreement_ he and Revan had made to know it wouldn't interfere with Cerberus' overall mission. There were risks in trying to get the Conduit from Ilos that the Salarian Union's STG had acquired, but it wasn't impossible and with the right amount of credits and threats, Cerberus would have the final piece of Revan's request for his services on their current mission within several weeks, perhaps a month at the most. Shifting slightly under the curious stare of Shepard, Miranda pushed aside her misgivings. She believed in what Cerberus stood for and Revan's requests were minor in the grand scheme of the Reaper threat, let alone the Collectors and the weapon Revan had mentioned once he'd heard the threat against their galaxy was mechanical in nature had been as ridiculous as it was ancient... well, as ancient as nuclear weapons were. EMP based weapons that delivered their electronic-damaging payloads in self-contained ion charges were beyond the abilities of the Citadel and Terminus worlds, but apparently child's play to Revan.

"I suppose you'll want the schematics?"

Revan muttered, ignoring the frown on Shepard's features. Ion cannons were hardly the most dangerous thing he could hand over in regards to his galaxy's technology. The Reapers had to be stopped, that was infinitely clearer after his experience with the Seeker swarmer and Revan brought up a rough schematic he'd been working on, stored in his Omni-tool, the pale blue light of his modified device in stark contrast to the orange of Miranda's as she accepted the upload.

"Something you want to tell me?"

Shepard asked as he approached the two. The rest of the crew had slowly filtered out, ignoring the conversation between the Cerberus Operative and former Jedi Knight, leaving the three alone, aside from EDI's watchful presence. Miranda cast Revan a blank look, leaving the point of their discussion up to the former Jedi Knight. Revan's masked features lowered to his Omni-tool once more before bringing up a rough schematic of an Ion-Cannon's interior, modified to accept nuclear-based fission reactors as the Mass Effect fields of the micro-fusion power cores of standard weapon load outs from the Citadel galaxy disrupted the focusing matrix and effectively made the weapons over designed and expensive bombs.

"During my time on Omega I spend several weeks trying to design my galaxy's weapons using Mass Effect based tech as a basis. About all it did was grant me the ability to create new and expensive ways to blow things up. I decided to take a deeper look in the codex Lia provided me and came up with a solution to at least one of the problems. Ion cannons can be powered by nuclear fission reactors and... if I can find a way to shield the power sources from Element Zero fields without compromising the power flow... well; that will take time, years even. Until then I can give you a ship-mounted gun that can effectively _kill_ a Reaper."

Like most of the crew, Revan had been given access to sealed and classified files on the previous Normandy's actions against Saren, the Geth and Sovereign. It was odd at first, but Revan had merely taken it in stride, focusing on the schematics of an Ion-cannon he'd had to built from scratch with absolutely zero familiar components to work with. There would be drawbacks of course; charging the weapon, heat output that would fry any of the cooling systems the Citadel galaxy... but it would be possible as well as devastating against a mechanical enemy who's only defense was a shield designed to stop kinetic energy. And armor... lots of armor.

"Any way you can get this on the Normandy?"

Shepard finally asked, intrigued by the information uploaded to his own Omni-tool. Revan shrugged his shoulders, already having spent hours on the issues mixing the technology or trying to build it from scratch entailed.

"I'd have to do most of the work personally... and the resources are especially volatile... but I think I can do it."

Miranda chose that moment to rejoin the conversation, her arms uncrossing as one rested on her hip while the other gestured to the active hologram displayed on Shepard's Omni-tool.

"Either way the Illusive Man has committed significant Cerberus resources to this project. The best minds we have at our disposal have gone over the _concept_ information Revan gave them and they agree it is viable. These schematics will undoubtedly level the field against the Reapers, Commander."

Shepard was silent for a long moment, his blue eyes focused intensely on the image on display before him before his shoulders lowered slightly as a long, heavy sigh left his body and a genuine smile crossed his lips.

"Revan... I really don't know what to say. This weapon could save the entire galaxy."

The former Dark Lord of the Sith ignored Shepard's praise. The designs were rudimentary at best and despite his confidence in being able to assemble a working prototype given the right materials, it would still take time.

"This technology is in its infancy at the moment in your galaxy, Shepard. It will take time as well as a significant commitment to field it, let alone mass produce it. I still have to work out a way to shield the devices from the effects of Mass Effect fields, but I've been reading into that on the extranet and with the materials coming to me from Cerberus it's only a matter of time."

Shepard's enthusiasm passed as he considered leaving Revan on the Normandy and taking someone else for the next mission. The former General had just become an asset to the galaxy that they couldn't afford to lose. Reading Shepard's thought, Revan finished the systems check of his armor, pleased to note that the modified armor did not encumber his movements.

"Let's go get this Krogan, Commander."

Narrowing his eyes briefly, Shepard's blue gaze focused intensely on the former Jedi Knight before he nodded reluctantly. He'd seen Revan's battle prowess and as important as Revan's technical skills were, there were more immediate concerns and he had to trust his squad mates abilities both on and off the battlefield.

"No unnecessary risks."

The former N7 Marine ordered, Miranda mirroring his orders with a nod of agreement. Revan allowed himself a bit of amusement as he agreed. Neither the XO nor the Commander had any idea the _risks_ he was planning to take on the upcoming mission were only going to _appear _suicidal.


	12. Chapter 11: A Question of Loyalty Korlu

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: Decided to divide this chapter as I want to try to keep the updates coming at least once a week and with all the fighting it was getting pretty freaking long. Also... I just realized that aside from the first chapter and when Revan was testing his weapons a few chapters back that this is the first time he actually uses lightsabers in battle in this entire story... Hell, I was so stuck on the Mass Effect fighting system and how I was writing it out that I may have overlooked the nice little kill-sticks Revan carries around. This is my attempt to combine Mass Effect fighting styles with Star Wars ones... Let me know what you think.

Summary: Shepard catches a glimpse of the instability of his Jedi crewman and reminisces about his own demons while searching for a Krogan Warlord.

Chapter 11: A Question of Loyalty (Korlus Part I)

Over the dreary gray and rusted reddish-brown world of Korlus a small UT-47 Drop Shuttle entered the atmosphere. Wreckage from countless hulks of starships and space stations lay strewn about the planet, the toxic fumes from countless _recycling _plants breaking down the dead starships into their components from centuries before the advent of omni-gel still hanging in the air as a thick layer of smog. The not so low-key Cerberus emblem painted on the side of the shuttle gleamed slightly as it weaved between scattered starship skeletons and dropped rapidly, its thrusters working in conjunction with its oversized Mass Effect Core, dropping the small craft down to the surface to deliver its deadly payload.

Commander John Shepard readied his modified M-8 Avenger, the smooth blue-gray exterior of the weapon gleaming slightly in the distant, smog-choked sunlight. The faint light of the holo-reticle reflecting slightly against the blue of Shepard's right eye. "Looks like they didn't see our approach. Let's move it."

Garrus Vakarian was next off the shuttle, the Magnetic harness of his armor laden with a veritable arsenal of small arms assault weapons. While not as impressive as the heavy weapons Shepard carried, Archangel's personal weapons were not anything to take lightly. The powerful, but slow-firing M-92 Mantis was in the taloned hands of the Turian vigilante, the visor covering his eye painting the radio signals of hostiles in the area and lighting up his motion sensors with their Element Zero-based weapons and armor.

"We've got movement up ahead Shepard. Looks like a patrol. I'm getting three positive signals. Just enough for each of us."

Revan Qel-Droma chose that moment to exit the shuttle, the door sealing behind his red and black-armored form. The former Jedi Knight and Dark Lord of the Sith held no weapons in his hands, a stark contrast to his companions as he allowed the Force and his senses to reach out, confirming the position of the Blue Sun guards that his mask's HUD had located. Making a quick adjustment to his omni-tool, the Mandalorian-raised near-human waited as the shuttle lifted away, keeping low and hiding behind the rusted, skeletal remains of once-great starships to avoid detection and holding nearby to drop its own team of fighters if Shepard ran into any trouble he and his squad couldn't handle. If Shepard had any idea how the mission would turn out, he would've left Revan on the Normandy.

"Alright, we'll hit them hard and fast before they can get a message off to their other-"

Shepard stopped speaking, his brow furrowing as he cast a quick glance around his location. Garrus, sensing the tension in the Commander also allowed his eyes to scan their surroundings. The Turian and Human were alone, the only sound reaching them that of a distant battle and a thick, acrid breeze. Revan was nowhere to be seen and it only took the two men a shared look of confusion that lasted only seconds before they heard a faint humming sound and screams of agony. Breaking off into an adrenaline-fuelled sprint, Shepard took the lead while Garrus allowed himself to fall behind slightly, his sniper rifle going to his magnetic harness while his M-15 Vindicator assault rifle extending as he brought it to bear on the figures positioned around the corner he'd followed Shepard towards. Years of training had stopped both men from advancing blindly and Garrus waited for Shepard to give the signal, watching tensely as Shepard slowly leaned from cover, the expression on the former N7 commando's features unreadable before he lowered his battle-stance and moved out of cover, closing the distance between himself and the pile of bodies at Revan Qel-Droma's feet. Garrus' mandibles shifted nervously before he followed the Commander, the thick cartilage of his avian features flaring in confusion and surprise as he gaped at the sight before him. It looked like someone had taken a guardian laser and sliced clean through two Blue Sun mercenaries. Steam was coming from the dismembered bodies, deep and violent orange gouges glowing along the black gashes in their armor. A third was on the ground, his arm severed and cauterized while he screamed the sound of a cornered animal, his remaining hand on his head instead of his stump of a missing limb. The screams were terrifying, even if they weren't from a Turian and Garrus shuddered as he remembered where he'd heard the sounds before. Doctor Saleon's mutated test subjects had given off the same inhuman wail and the memory of that confrontation tainted the Turian's memory as he approached the spectacle on display before him. Ozone was thick in the air as Revan held his lightsaber's ruby-red blade to the throat of the thrashing and screaming mercenary before him, his features impassive beneath his demonic mask as he looked on in silence. He was in the process of tearing apart the mind of the human before him, searching for any vital information for their mission when a heavy weight struck unexpectedly and expertly on the base of his neck. Armor and an super-human endurance kept the blow from knocking the former Jedi out on the spot but stars still clouded Revan's vision before he turned to glare at the source of the, in his opinion; unwarranted assault.

"What the Hell do you think you're doing?"

Shepard's voice did not rise despite the anger he felt. Heat scorched his eyes painfully as his ocular implants glowed orange from the excess adrenaline burning in his veins and he drew his gaze level with the endlessly black slit in Revan's mask, pushing past the unease he felt to allow disgust to show on his features.

"Eliminating hostiles and gaining information."

The toneless quality to Revan's voice, filtered through the microphone in his mask reminded the Commander briefly of Sovereign's horrifying voice before he mentally forced the shiver in his spine from moving up to his shoulders. He wasn't going to back down now and whatever the _Hell_ he had just seen was not right in his books and he wouldn't accept it on his crew.

"You were torturing him, using that weapon of yours to-"

Revan cut the Commander off disrespectfully, his tone taking on a hint of what sounded like amusement which only drove Shepard into a deeper level of anger.

"I merely disabled the man with the lightsaber, Shepard. His mind easily crumbled to my abilities and he is no longer able to present a threat to us or our mission."

Baring his teeth and taking on an expression he normally saved for slavers and thick-headed Krogan, Shepard reached out and grabbed the top of the breastplate of Revan's armor, dragging the man towards him as each violated the other's personal space.

"That isn't how I do things. You could have blown this entire mission, Revan. We need Intel, but we don't need his screams drawing the attention of every mercenary within a kilometer of us! What the Hell were you thinking?"

Revan allowed Shepard to manhandle him, flicking off his lightsaber and gesturing to the quivering mess of a man he'd just interrogated by his own standards. He'd been a Dark Lord of the Sith and a General to the Republic. He wasn't going to get squeamish or emotional over how he got information. Tearing the thoughts from an unwilling mind was always painful and to be fair, the Blue Sun mercenary had pulled a pistol on him before he'd bothered removing him of his arm.

"P-please. I-I'll tell them anything you want!"

As if on cue, a radio message from another Blue Sun patrol sounded over the earpiece the unfortunate mercenary was wearing and Revan merely stared at Shepard a moment longer before turning his masked face to the terrified and severely wounded mercenary.

"You heard your friends. They need direction."

Nodding shakily and offering no further protest, the mercenary radioed a false message to his comrades before Shepard reluctantly released his vice-grip on Revan's armored form and pulled a pack of medi-gel out for the wounded man before him. Revan calmly flicked his wrist, the Force manifesting in a slight tremor in the air around the former Dark Lord before it violently seized the fallen man and wretched his neck to the side. The snap was unmistakable to both Shepard and Garrus' ears and both jumped from the collapsing body to see Revan casually spinning his inactive lightsaber between his fingers.

"He might have given us away once we moved on. Too much of a risk to leave alive, let alone help."

In Revan's mind things were fairly clear. Mission; the potentially life-threatening kind, not the teenaged blue kind with head-tails, data-slicing skills that would put most Republic infiltrators to shame and a chip on her shoulder over an older brother. Enemy; not the kind you coddled or negotiated with. Goal; the success of the mission through any means necessary, preferably in the most expedient way so as to make previously said mission a success.

"You son of a bitch!"

Shepard's armored fist nearly knocked Revan's mask from his face. Careful to keep his saber inactive and dropping to the ground, Revan allowed the Commander his momentary loss of control, his lips quirking beneath his mask when he was pinned quickly by Garrus' foot to his chest as Shepard glared down at him, the barrel of his assault rifle inches from his masked face. He was in absolute control of the situation but they didn't need to know that just yet.

"What you're working on is important, Revan. Maybe more important than anything else right now but I will not tolerate an unstable psychopath on my squad. We do our jobs, but we do them right and as a team. If you can't handle that I've got no problem leaving you here. Maybe even with a bullet in the leg to remind you of your fleeting common sense. I don't allow that kind of behavior on my team. We don't torture, we don't murder and we don't pursue our own goals outside of the mission. You agreed to this on Omega. Why I have to remind you now is beyond me but so help me if you try anything like this again there is no amount of info you have on a Reaper-killing weapon that is going to stop me. Are. We. Clear?"

The Commander's assault rifle tapped the red and black mask obscuring Revan's blank features and while Revan knew it would absorb or deflect the shots if struck there was still the risk of a small round striking his visor and shattering the reinforced transparisteel. His powers could easily dispatch his two assailants but Revan allowed his mind to calm. He'd projected a brief image of what he'd seen while scanning the Seeker Swarmer with his senses into the Blue Sun merc's mind and even if he'd appeared coherent it was only a matter of time before the man's weak-willed mind collapsed under even a fraction of the reality facing his galaxy and all races within. Still, he may have been a bit overzealous in his dispatching of the patrol and while he'd vented his frustrations on the three Blue Sun mercenaries there were still dozens and dozens more within the facility... possibly hundreds.

"My fighting style is vastly different from what I've shown you so far Shepard. The blade is my secondary weapon and my abilities the primary. I can level this entire facility in mere seconds and we could walk over the corpses of our **enemies**__to Warlord Okeer. These men signed on to a vicious pack of bloodthirsty and murderous pirates and slavers and I have absolutely no sympathy towards them as sentient beings. They **deserve** the pain I can bring down on them. Hell, Shepard. In me you have a walking super weapon if you'll only grow the stomach to use me properly."

Garrus unpinned Revan, backing away as he cast a wary glance at their surroundings. Despite the violent display of Revan's abilities a lot of what he was saying was making too much sense to the former vigilante and it wasn't like anyone in Blue Sun armor in the last two decades was a shining example of tolerance and understanding. Hell, if it wasn't for the look of disappointed anger on Shepard's face he would probably be cheering Revan on as he ripped the facility apart with his strange mind-powers. As it stood, a pang of guilt grew in the heart of the former C-Sec officer as he realized how much he'd changed in the two years since Shepard's _death_ while the Commander had remained the same beacon of morality and goodness he'd always been.

"I don't like this either but you gotta admit he got results, Shepard."

The look Shepard turned to his friend was enough to silence any more input from Garrus and the Turian turned quickly to monitor the perimeter. It really wasn't the place for a theological debate on the moral parameters of their mission let alone a fistfight between supposed allies and while a lot of what Revan said rang true in Garrus' disillusioned mind, he would be the first in line behind Shepard to pull the trigger if the Commander ordered the threat eliminated. He had genuinely respected and liked the Commander and while their friendship was on shaky ground in light of their unexpected reunion and Shepard's less-than upstanding benefactors it was a simple choice of who to back in this situation. He knew Shepard, he didn't know Revan.

"I'm not going to dictate to you how best to use your abilities in combat, Revan... but this behavior is unacceptable. I'm starting to think the Council wasn't just spewing their normal garbage when they passed sentence on you."

Any trace of amused superiority vanished from Revan's demeanor as he rose to his feet, a snarl on his lips.

"I did nothing to harm them! Nothing to anyone in this galaxy not asking for it! These men would have killed us and many more had they lived, Shepard. The Reapers need not come if scum like this is allowed to continue."

Shepard's features hardened to an unmoving mask as he heard the passion in Revan's voice. Obviously the Blue Sun's conduct on Omega had failed to endear them to the dangerous man but he'd built his entire career both as a Marine and a Spectre on doing the right thing. No compromise. It was as much a part of him as his own mind, his own heart and the blood in his veins. He wasn't going to change that for anyone, regardless of what they promised. Short of the Illusive Man and his _missions,_ Shepard wasn't going to compromise his beliefs. Those missing colonists needed Cerberus, loathe as he was to admit it and the behind the back deal Revan had garnered with the Illusive Man and Miranda hadn't exactly filled the Commander with warm feelings in regards to his _ally's _loyalties."What did the Illusive Man promise you?"

Shepard finally asked, drawing a startled look from Garrus as the Turian noticed the abrupt change in the air. An electric hum had descended around the trio and Revan's expression, while unreadable through his mask seemed to take on a menacing form.

"Is a war zone really the best place to be-"

Revan began, his words stopping as a shot from Shepard's assault rifle struck the ground by his foot. "I asked you a question, Revan."

There was no humor or emotion in Shepard's tone. No anger either and Revan drew back his powers, his senses detecting no immediate threats while he considered his options. The Illusive Man had forbidden him from interfering in Shepard's grand mission, conveniently leaving out Cerberus' goals beyond the normal advancement and protection of humanity speech. As it was, Revan didn't trust the Illusive Man. The Cerberus leader spoke to Revan as if he'd done something to earn the Mandalorian-raised warrior's respect and Revan scoffed mentally at the thought. Shepard had more of his respect than the Illusive Man ever would. Shepard at least had the courage and drive to stand in the face of someone who so easily outclassed him and while he'd taken steps to assure his conversation with the Illusive man was a private meeting and their plans weren't overheard there was no agreement made between the two over its secrecy. It should have gone without saying, but the Illusive Man had passed the information and the nature of their deal on to Miranda. It was an insult to his abilities and a clear sign of the Illusive Man wanting to keep an eye on his investment in Revan. The former Jedi Knight bared his teeth in a vicious smirk beneath his mask as he laughed to himself. It wasn't like he was going to deliver on his part of the bargain anyways."I lied about the Ion cannons, Shepard."

For a moment it looked like the Commander was going to end it all then and there but after taking in a deep breath and allowing betrayal to cover his features as well as a bitterness that was so deep it seemed to sap the Force of any hope, Shepard merely sighed and shook his head in melancholy. Revan was quick to amend his statement.

"Lawson should have seen the flaw immediately if she is half as smart as she claims to be. I could easily have converted a micro-fusion reactor based on helium 3 to power the ion cannons but I asked specifically for a nuclear fission reactor. I made them believe a radioactive isotope was necessary for the EMP to be transferable to the Ion charge when in reality it's just a fancy focusing emitter housed between a power cell and a particle accelerator. Cerberus' Ion-cannons will work, but they'll be limited heavily by cooling issues that the fusion-based helium 3 reactor would not have... but I the design schematics I gave them would not allow conversion of the power supply without catastrophic power overloads. They'll have to redesign the weapon entirely and as the tech is only theoretical to them, it's unlikely they'll ever make it work without decades of research and field testing. I only need a handful of the supplies I asked of Cerberus to make the Ion cannon. The rest... well..."

Revan trailed off, giving Shepard time to understand what he was planning. In the back of his mind he wondered why he was being so frank with the Commander before pushing it aside. Being able to read minds made it easy to decide who was trustworthy and had earned respect. Shepard was both and Revan knew Garrus would say nothing to anyone over the matter, not if it was going to screw over an organization like Cerberus. While not an engineer or a tech-oriented person, Shepard was quick to realize the implications. Weapons grade radioactive materials and a pile of mechanical parts.

"You're going to make a thermonuclear bomb?"

Shepard was sure Cerberus would have plenty of tactical nukes at their disposal and Revan quickly responded to the Commander, his tone so serious it chilled the Commander.

"The Reapers aren't the only threat out there, Shepard. My galaxy is at the mercy of an enemy that has had a thousand years to prepare for their war. They don't have any idea of the danger they are in and I needed the Illusive Man's resources. He's promised me the Conduit as well as the sensor readings from the Presidium during my arrival in exchange for free reign over any tech I am supposed to _bring back_ from my galaxy. I made him a trade agreement but really, I'm just going to shove a home-made nuke in the heart of my enemy's seat of power and destroy any access they have to this galaxy and vice-versa."

Revan paused a moment to allow the Commander to fully understand what he was willing to do. He'd played Cerberus' greed against them to gain access to a way to end or at the very least cripple the Sith threat to his own galaxy and while it would bring down the ire of an organization as powerful as Cerberus, Revan would be the sole source of information on his galaxy's technology and would be too valuable to kill.

It was a devious and underhanded scheme worthy of any STG unit or Cerberus Cell and it left the Commander a bit unsettled at the implications. While the plan wasn't exactly complex; simple plans were usually the best ones and no amount of whatever powers Revan seemed to possess would stand up against a nuke. Let alone one who's yield would have the benefit of Revan's technical genius behind it.

"This is- You'll be giving up your only way home, Revan... and why are you telling me this?"

Without pause, Revan looked Shepard straight in the eye, the gesture obvious even beneath his armored mask and answered without hesitation, his voice empty of any emotion.

"Cerberus can't be trusted. Why should we make nice with them when they're going to lead us into a trap or get us killed with their pointless little _missions_. I have nothing to go back for in my galaxy save for some emotional closure and really... we have more to worry about than my _feelings_."

The last word was said with such a trivial tone that it called an end to the rest of the conversation/interrogation. No other words were exchanged for a long moment before Shepard finally lowered his weapon from Revan, Garrus subconsciously following the Commander's lead and chuckling, drawing both men's gazes.

"It'll be funny to see the Illusive Man's face when he realizes how badly you screwed him over."

Shepard, momentarily forgetting Revan's brutal display on the Blue Sun mercs allowed a small smirk to cross his lips before he sobered quickly and took stock of their situation.

"You promise to rein in this... this mindless brutality... and I'll make sure you get your chance to hit your people's enemy. I want to know what you're dealing with first though. "

Shepard wasn't going to let a possibly unstable and dangerous man use a nuke on someone just on his word alone. He needed proof of Revan's enemy before he would be comfortable giving the man his support. Revan, sensing Shepard's misgivings and having reached his word quota for the day in regards to verbal explanations allowed a tendril of his abilities to lock onto Shepard's surprisingly strong mind and sent a flash of the Sith capitol on Ziost and his duel with their Emperor. Allowing his own sense of reality to cloud the vision he was giving Shepard, Revan exposed humanity's first Spectre to the Force. Through the vision Shepard could see and hear exactly what Revan could at the time, could sense the sickening malice at the edge of his senses and snuffing out any even remotely positive emotions. The Sith, while not as genocidal as the Reapers were by no means humanitarians. Throughout the vision, Shepard could see the thoughts of the Sith on display before Revan's senses as if on a vid-screen and the result was immediate.

Revan broke the mental connection quickly as Shepard heaved his lunch, vomiting on the ground and coughing violently as he tried to regain a sense of equilibrium. The Sith, nearly all of them had only one thought on their minds. Revenge. They wanted to kill or enslave every other sentient in Revan's galaxy or anywhere they could extend their malicious reach. They believed to a fanatical degree that they had the right to dominate and enslave those considered weaker simply because they had the power and while a vast majority of the minds he sensed were not as focused as those of the Sith warriors and Emperor in their malice, it was still a suffocating undercurrent to their thoughts and with a shiver Shepard turned his gaze to Revan, offering a single nod as his consent for Revan to proceed with his plan. He was still skeptical... but that could wait until it was time to deal with Revan's loyalties. Revan had been surprisingly honest with him and as a result he knew he couldn't trust the vision alone. Revan could read minds with ease, trick them and manipulate them without the victim even knowing it. Shepard wouldn't trust a _vision_ again without some tangible proof. That meant going through the Conduit with Revan and his little surprise for the Sith and that meant yet another mission...

"We got movement. Whatever the Hell you two are doing can wait."

Revan and Shepard glanced at Garrus as the Turian shouldered his assault rifle before both exchanged glances and Shepard did the same as his comrade. Revan merely readied his saber and his senses, prepared to exploit his abilities in the coming battle. All arguments and agendas were forgotten between the three as Shepard took point, Revan creeping alongside the Commander and palming his pistol as he considered the dangers of friendly fire if he were to simply charge his opponents with a lightsaber. The answer to Revan's internal debate came when a half dozen Blue Sun mercs; a combination of Human, Batarian and Turian appeared on the edge of a walkway overhead, mass accelerated projectiles whizzing by their position as Shepard and Garrus dove for cover. Revan merely shifted his body, avoiding the hyper-velocity projectiles as if they were meant to miss him before taking cover near an adjacent pile of debris from his companions.

While Revan could avoid most of the projectiles and possibly even deflect them with his armored plates and shielding there was no guarantee his abilities would protect him from a dozen automatic weapons focusing solely on him.

Shepard cursed as he huddled as close to the ground as his armor would allow. Hypervelocity rounds whizzed pas his head, the deafening crack of the projectiles breaking the sound barrier making his ears ring even through the sound-amplifying headset he wore. A flanging snarl told him Garrus was in the same predicament as he was and Shepard turned his eyes from their limited cover to spot Revan's armored form also behind cover, exposed on both sides as they were and in a kill zone. The twists and turns of the metal walls and starship hulks around them were like a maze that the enemy had taken advantage of. With the high ground as well as better cover the Blue Suns had the trio pinned effectively and any advance would be suicidal with the number of guns leveled at them.

The distraction of his confrontation with Revan as well as the images thrown into his mind from the man had left him dazed and nauseous. It was a significantly less intense sensation than the Prothean Beacon on Eden Prime had been... but that had put him in a mini-coma for fifteen hours while the vision Revan had granted him had made him feel like he'd had a drinking contest with a Krogan... and a half-dozen shots of ryncol. Distraction and combat were bad combinations and it was painfully obvious to Shepard that they'd need some serious luck to get out of this situation.

Turning his eyes to Revan, the Commander grit his teeth in irritation at the right of the pistol sitting on the former Jedi Knight's holster. Preparing to shout an order for the man to give him and Garrus cover-fire so they could get to better cover the words died in Shepard's throat before they could pass his lips as Revan's hand moved to his belt and the man vanished from the visual spectrum. A faint outline that looked like nothing more than a heat distortion was still visible, but the former Spectre lost sight of the distortion after blinking some dust out of his eyes, the only trace of Revan's presence the heavy pistol lying on the ground where he'd been moments before.

Seventy yards from Shepard and Garrus' positions a dozen Blue Sun Mercenaries poured a constant rain of fire down upon their foes as their suit's scanners looking for traces of Element Zero on their trackers. Seeing that all three targets were still within their kill-box; confidence born of high powered weapons, resilient armor and text-book perfect positioning was bolstered when none of their enemies moved from their cover. All they had to do was spread out to the adjacent walkways and strike their enemy's flank to finish the intruders off.

Assumptions are often fatal mistakes in combat and it was no different in this situation. Four Blue Sun mercenaries broke off from the main force, a trio of fighters armed with assault rifles breaking cover and moving to a position due planetary east of their opponents while the forth took a new position and prepared a high-powered and deadly M-98 Widow sniper rifle to tear apart the cover of their foes. Checking his tracker and wanting to make certain the enemy was in an even worse position the Turian mercenary aimed down his sights at the single element zero contact on his scopes and fired a deadly projectile into the rusted metal of his targets cover. A smirk crossed the sniper's lips as shouts of surprise came from the two remaining hostiles and he drew his rifle to bear on their position, his taloned finger gently squeezing the trigger after he reloaded a new thermal clip into the powerful weapon.

Shepard gave a startled curse when a deafening crack struck the cover Revan had been using mere seconds before and the former N-7 activated the overcharge option on his omni-tool to chance a break for a new position. If he and Garrus didn't move fast they'd be corpses under the firepower of an anti-material rifle designed to stop Krogan and armored assault vehicles in their tracks. Blind-firing his assault rifle the Commander broke into an adrenaline-fueled sprint, his mind going blank as he allowed instinct to take over. Garrus took his cur from Shepard and sprayed poorly-aimed five-round bursts from his M-15 Vindicator as he moved to a new set of cover. Turian Vigilante and Human Spectre reached their new cover unharmed and Garrus spotted Shepard lifting Revan's abandoned pistol before realizing they were no longer receiving enemy fire on their positions. Recalling the evens prior to their current cluster-fuck, the two men exchanged glances before both simultaneously leaned from their cover and leveled their rifles on the chaos before them.

In the corner of his eye, Shepard spotted three Blue Sun mercenaries trying to take advantage of their minimum cover in clear sight of his position and called out to Garrus as the two warriors made quick and efficient work of their would-be flankers. The Commander's shots were fired with the accuracy of an N-7 Commando in his prime with the best weapons and mods available while Garrus' bursts stripped away the shields and took gouging chunks from the armor of their foes. Within seconds of sustained and coordinated fire the two had dropped three Blue Suns before both took new cover and reloaded their thermal clips. Sweat beaded on Shepard's forehead, stinging his eyes as he tried to calm his breathing. They'd beaten the odds again by getting out of their suicidal and ill-placed cover and the Commander took extra care to check the three-dimensional map of their small battlefield to make certain they weren't taken by surprise again from overlapping walkways.

"Commander!"Garrus' exclamation drew Shepard from his brief study of the battleground and he nodded to his companion as they both leaned from cover again and sighted the walkway above. A sniper lay at an odd angle, the massive form of an M-98 Widow clenched in a death-grip in his talons as he hung halfway off of the walkway overhead. A steaming orange gash ran along the weapon's mechanism, having cleaved the weapon in to with surgical precision and continued on to the Turian's helmet. The black scorch in the armored mask, its edges glowing orange told of a quick and violent death and Shepard turned his gaze from their would-be assassin to see what had gained the attention of their once threatening foes.

Slicing cleanly through the Turian sniper's weapon and into his skull had prevented the mercenary from getting off a second shot from his devastating weapon and Revan sprinted past, the action of dispatching the sniper only taking seconds. The red glow of his lightsaber and the flat lining of the sniper on the eight remaining Blue Sun's HUDs had made stealth impossible, though Revan hardly needed it. The Force empowering his body and his armor and shields granting him protection from the shifting fire of his opponents, Revan performed an inhuman leap across the fifteen meters separating the walkway he was on to land in the midst of the gathered Blue Suns. Two groups of four were separated by a raised skeletal support frame from an ancient starship and gave Revan precious seconds to exploit his enemy's divided firepower and numbers.

Metal groaned as the Force swirled violently around Revan, a whirlwind of power energizing the air and stripping away the cover of the four opponents out of his line of sight. Shepard and Garrus could have those, Revan decided as he ducked with inhuman speed and ran his saber across the abdomen of the Batarian mercenary closest to him. With the Force, Revan grasped the collapsing body before it could fall and used it as a humanoid shield, the armor and kinetic barriers of the dying Batarian still active even after the lightsaber slash. Reversing his backhanded grip on his weapon and adopting an Ataru stance, Revan did a spinning leap over the meat-shield, allowing his invisible grip on the body to release as he struck a Human Blue Sun combatant and sliced the unfortunate woman cleanly in half.

Rounds deflected from the powerful Mandalorian dueling shields covering Revan's form before they lost power under the constant strain of fire and several shots from the recovering two Blue Suns within sight of him struck his armor. Cushioned from the force of the impacts due to the new upgrades he'd recently made to his armor, Revan allowed a sinister chuckle to escape his throat as he returned to a backhanded grip on his lightsaber and his favored Juyo stance. The Force grasped both mercenary's weapons and tore them from their hands before it extended its reach to the remaining Turian and Human. Both mercenaries were unable to escape the unrelenting grasp on their forms as they were dragged towards Revan and both soundly decapitated with casual, almost lazy back-handed slashes that resembled a flourish more than a set of deadly kill strikes.

Without cover the four remaining Blue Sun mercenaries had no chance against Shepard and Garrus' skill. Both could see the impressive display of Revan's abilities but did not take the time to gawk or admire them as their foes were moving to strike their ally. All arguments or hostility was forgotten between the three men as they combined their deadly skills and weapons and brought down a force of mercenaries four times their size a mere fifty seconds after being pinned down.

As the final Blue Sun mercenary fell to a shot from Garrus' Vindicator, the Turian smirked towards Shepard, nodding his head towards Revan's position as he gave an amused chuckle.

"Why couldn't we have him with us when we were hunting Saren? Would've made killing all those Geth a lot easier."

Shepard allowed his mind and body to calm from the battle, his senses still alert to nearby threats though the immediate danger had passed with their violent encounter. He allowed his friend and squadmate a small nod of agreement though no smirk crossed his lips. He remembered Revan's actions on the last group of mercenaries and while what he'd seen of the second encounter of Revan's odd and frightening fighting abilities unleashed upon his foes he still remembered the screams of the literally disarmed mercenary and the merciless snap of the man's neck at Revan's _hands._ He wouldn't forget that anytime soon and he would make sure to have a talk with Yeoman Chambers when he got back to the Normandy. He could recognize signs of post-traumatic stress within Revan that was turning into violently homicidal and sociopathic tendencies and he intended to do his best to _save_ the man. Revan was dangerous and unpredictable... but then so was Wrex and Shepard had seen the better man... or Krogan as it were within his former crewmate and he could see glimpses of it within Revan when he interacted with Lia and Shari'a. Asari weren't easily fooled; especially Matrons and Revan somehow had Shari'a's trust and Lia's as well. His experiences with Tali on the original Normandy reminded him of Quarrian's aptitude of reading body-language, something he'd unconsciously picked up on from the young pilgrim that had helped him track down and ultimately defeat Saren and Sovereign. He could see the discomfort in Revan's body each time Shari'a was near and the reluctance the man had to offer a casual touch of comfort or support to Lia. He'd suffered a similar state himself after barely surviving his father's and sister's deaths on Mindoir and the Batarian raid there when he was only sixteen. It had been a small favor that his mother had been away on duty with the Navy and wasn't subjected to the horrors of the slaver's raid and it had taken months of counseling and literally years of restless nights before he could allow himself to slip into a restful sleep. He'd never found his sister Jane's body, the house having been burned to ashes. She'd been two years younger than him at the time, barely a teenager when the slavers had come and he'd been out hunting for local game, returning to a burning house and the sight of his father's battered and executed corpse, clad in the battle-marked armor of a colonial militia Marine.

His actions there, wandering in a field chasing the planet's equivalent of deer as his family was butchered by slavers still shamed him to this day and it was only the horrors unleashed on Eden Prime and the pursuit of Saren and seeing with his own eyes the damage the path he'd walked could lead to that had pulled him away from the hole he'd been slowly burying himself in. N-7 Commandoes that had seen as much action as he had were rare and he'd been the first to step forward for the dangerous missions. He'd buried himself in his duty, barely speaking with his mother to avoid the mutual grief they shared and instead becoming a hero to the Alliance. Heroes had short life expectancies and it hadn't really bothered him until he'd met an Asari archaeologist on Therum.

Liara had seen something good in him, something worth saving and had nurtured it and been with him every step of the way on his hunt across the galaxy for Saren; even when it was her own mother, barely coherent as she struggled against the Reaper's Indoctrination to give them the coordinates of the Mu Relay so they could stop Sovereign. What had happened there between Liara and Benezia was so heartbreaking to watch that Shepard could scarcely remember releasing the Rachni Queen shortly after. His eyes had been on Liara, even as she tried to be strong and move on after her mother's passing, the grief still plain to see in her eyes even as her voice spoke with the certainty of their mission and it was to her that he owed his humanity and life. An Asari had saved his soul by sharing a piece of her own with him and he'd begun to care again about the people around him, the crew he'd gathered in his hunt for the Conduit.

Thinking of everything that had been lost to the Collectors, not just what he'd lost but also the countless missing colonists, Shepard's blue eyes hardened, ice entering his expression as he sighted an armored Krogan wielding a shotgun and staring up to where Revan still fought after both combined their efforts to slay a squad Blue Sun mercenaries on the walkway above. Most of the Blue Suns in the training grounds were already dead or dying with the combined efforts of the Normandy's squad and the Krogan berserkers that cluttered the grounds... but this one wasn't assaulting them on sight. That much was obvious by the way it gazed up at Revan's armored form as he finished off two other Blue Sun mercenaries with a spinning slash of his lightsaber and an open palm to the remaining fighter that somehow caused the unfortunate human to be pushed backwards off of the walkway and fall to his death, even though Shepard never saw Revan's hand connect with the still-twitching body.

Revan frowned beneath his mask at the way the Krogan below him felt through the Force. It was a dangerous opponent obviously, but this one felt almost docile as it took notice of his presence. Revan's hesitance to kill the massive alien was reinforced by Shepard as the Commander motioned for Garrus to lower his weapon as the two cautiously approached the unmoving alien. From above on the walkway, Revan watched the interaction curiously. He'd watched the Krogan slaughter a squad of Blue Suns but here it was having a pleasant conversation with Shepard. Shaking his head at the spectacle, Revan decided it might be better to emulate some of Shepard's actions as he stayed his hand in slaying the Krogan with his Force-powers. He had no wish to get close to a potential biotic in combat and from what his senses were screaming at him this Krogan was not lacking in that discipline.

A dull thump caused Shepard to glance over his shoulder, abandoning his conversation with the tank-born Krogan. Revan was rising from a crouch after leaping down from the walkway above. Reaching down to his harness, Shepard breathed a sigh of relief as Revan attached the deadly energy blade in his hand to his belt and accepted his previously abandoned pistol. From the look of the building beyond them and what EDI's scans had found a pistol seemed more practical than a laser sword. The tank-born Krogan moved aside a massive plate of debris, clearing a passageway for the trio of fighters before it turned and walked back into the training area. The Krogan's underdeveloped mind could comprehend that none of the Normandy squad mates were its enemy but fell back into the comfort of his mental programming, refusing to leave the life it had known for the seven days of its conscious life.

"That was bloody unsettling."

Revan commented, having encountered a number of the more unpleasant Krogan on Omega in the form of the vicious Blood Pack. Garrus and Shepard both nodded their agreement as Revan checked the thermal clip of his returned pistol before Shepard moved ahead, his weapon sweeping for enemies as they passed through the jagged entrance to the passageway the Krogan had revealed to them. Almost immediately the trio was alerted to the signs of battle as voices shouted in panic, weapons-fire roaring through the enclosed space of the path as it led down beneath the wreckage. Two men clad in Blue Sun armor appeared at the bottom of the ramp from a side-passageway, their weapons firing the way they'd come as a third Blue Sun out of their line of sight gave a death-cry, the deep rumbling of a Krogan's voice echoing over the sound of battle.

The two Blue Sun mercenaries managed to down the Krogan before it was in sight of Shepard's squad and Revan raised his pistol, the distance too great between himself and his foes for a melee and the risk of getting caught in the crossfire too great a risk. Revan lined up his weapon's targeting reticule on the helmet of one of the mercs and squeezed off a devastating headshot while the other managed to fire several poorly-placed shots on the Normandy squad before he too fell to the roar of Shepard's assault rifle. Garrus had been keeping his sharp eyes focused on the corner the mercenaries had come around, listening intently as his senses mentally drew picture of a dozen Krogan if the motion tracker in his armor was working correctly. It couldn't be Blue Suns or the three freshly slain mercs before them wouldn't have retreated from their support.

"Might want a stronger gun, Revan."

Garrus offered as he nodded to the shotgun clenched in the hands of one of the Blue Sun's death-grip. Revan declined the shotgun, his lightsaber returning to his hand as he took a left handed grip of his pistol and kept the Sith-crafted blade in his dominant right in a reversed grip.

"I'm fine with these for now, Vakarian."

Revan commented, causing the Turian to share an uncertain glance with Shepard. He hadn't been privy to Revan going hand to hand with a Krogan with only Shepard's knife in the quarantine zone on Omega and even though he'd seen the deadly effect Revan's skill with the blade had unleashed on their mercenary foes he still knew the best defense against a Krogan was distance and firepower. The M-5 Phalanx in Revan's left hand had respectable stopping power but with only six shots and the fact that their next fight would be with Krogan doubt was beginning to set in Garrus. Shepard wordlessly shifted his gaze over his companions, silently urging them forward before Garrus cast a longing look down at the perfectly good weapons in the hands of the dead mercenaries before following Shepard once more into statistically terrible odds.

~End of Part I~

AN: I'm going with a mixture of Spacer/Colonist War Hero/Sole Survivor for Shepard's character... with just a hint of Renegade for certain situations. This obviously differs slightly from the game's options but that's only because I wanted to make him a broader character and not some mindless good guy spouting paragon platitudes with high-minded ideals as his moral foundation. I think the darker past for Shepard adds depth to him and may even convince Renegade-Revan to stay in line later on... if he feels like it (the Ass). Obviously a Shepard/Liara pairing. Any others we'll have to wait and see.


	13. Chapter 12: Malfunction Korlus Part II

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

AN: Revan is a badass warrior with Force powers, Shepard is a badass soldier with cybernetic enhancements and nearly an entire armory attached to his hardsuit. Who would win? Revan, hands down... but that is not to say it would be easy. Revan is fighting entirely new species and weapons based on an entirely different set of standards. Projectiles the size of a grain of sand and moving at hypervelocity doesn't exactly equal success at dodging... but he can avoid or confuse the senses of his attackers and _see_ where the shots will be. As the Mass accelerated rounds are not blasterbolts he can't deflect them with his lightsabers, but he can with hardened sections of his Mandalorian armor in a pinch. The Turian Sniper with the overpowered rifle was oversight on my part. I needed something that could punch though cover as a plot device and I didn't finish reading the damned explanation. Let's just pretend a mercenary outside of Council Space doesn't have a problem with illegal gene modification.

Chapter 12: Malfunction (Korlus Part II)

In all his years as a soldier and his later time spent as an N7 Commando and a Spectre, John Shepard had never seen anything quite like what he was seeing at that very moment. The only thing the Commander could think of in recent memory that was even close to the sheer destruction he'd just bore witness to what Jack's escape from Purgatory. Even that escape had been in the realm of believability. The newest addition to his crew was a super powered biotic with a bad attitude and enough emotional scars to match each of the elaborate tattoos covering her, but even she had a certain set of basic rules to follow in combat. Despite her powerful biotics, Jack would still need to stop to collect her powers, still needed to raise a biotic barrier to avoid being torn apart by the fire of guard's weapons and she still needed to take cover when her powers had been taxed too far after her isolation and confinement. Revan was another thing entirely.

There had been hints of the extent of Revan's abilities. A crushed gunship, Miranda helplessly pinned to the wall by a telekinetic grip or the nearly impossible speed at which the man could move. Until this point, Shepard still put Revan's _Force_ powers in the same category as biotics... but this went beyond biotics. This went beyond almost anything he'd ever seen.

Having long since given up the instinctual need to seek cover, Shepard and Garrus were warily following in Revan's wake. Bodies lay strewn about at off angles, their necks or throats or even their vital organs crushed by an invisible hand. It was a humbling sight and Shepard did his best to keep his focus on the mission. Revan had gone apeshit over something when they'd been debating what to do about the Krogans. He hadn't caught all of what the man had muttered to himself but one word had stood out and it sent a chill down the first human Spectre's spine as he tried to get Revan's attention.

_"Indoctrination."_

A pale streak of energy pulsed over Revan's armor, grazing Shepard and overloading his kinetic barriers. Cursing as the tendril of energy gave him a slight shock, Shepard could only look on in equal parts surprise and horror as Revan stepped from where the squad was gathered and into the hive of Krogan. A thunderclap sounded, deafening to the Commander as he gave a curse and flinched back from the sight of Revan extending his left arm while his right held his lightsaber in a reversed grip. Blue-white energy shot from Revan's fingertips in a devastating blast of Force-charged lightning and the nearest Krogan to Revan simply collapsed to the ground with a strangled cry or agony, the lightning bypassing the hulking alien's armor and striking at its vital organs with such force and focus that they all instantly flash-fried, overwhelming its natural ability to regenerate.

Using the Force to _see_ the vital organs of his foes, Revan rushed forward with a Force-enhanced sprint down the lower walkway the Krogan were occupying. Leaping into the air the former Dark Lord of the Sith sailed gracefully through the air before descending with an audible crash on the walkway in the middle of three full grown tank-bred Krogan armed with shotguns. A wave of Force-energy passed from Revan's crouched form in a shockwave of power and knocked each of the Krogan back and off of the walkway. Bellows of surprised outrage came from the Krogan before they fell to their deaths, their shouted curses and roars echoing around the chamber as more Krogan appeared from the entrance to the Blue Sun facility.

_"I can level this entire facility in mere seconds and we can walk over the corpses of our __**enemies**__ to Warlord Okeer."_

Revan's previously spoken words rang true in Shepard's mind as he watched the armored figure extend his left hand outward to two Krogan that were charging his exposed position. Memories of Jenkins falling under the fire of Geth Drones on Eden Prime two years before flashed through Shepard's mind as Revan stood completely out of any real cover, facing his foes head-on in a suicidal display of recklessness. The two Krogan charging Revan were halted in their tracks, their eyes widening in surprise before Revan's head tilted slightly to the side and he made a violent twisting motion with his hand, closing his hand in the process.

The Force flowed through the room, channeling itself through Revan and exploding violently at his direction. A focused Force-crush attack assaulted the two Krogan captured in Revan's invisible grasp and Revan used his powers to focus the assault on the vital organs of his foes instead of wasting unnecessary energy on a compressing them to small sacs of twisted flesh and metal. Blood poured from the Krogan's eyes and mouths as they collapsed to the ground, the dull thumps of their bodies striking the walkway the only noise to come from them as the violent focus of Revan's assault killed both instantly.

Shifting his stance, Revan kept his hand extended to the two fresh bodies he'd just created before waving his hand towards a single Krogan that looked on in confused surprise. The Krogan's body glowed blue as it summoned a biotic barrier and it staggered as the two bodies of is fellow tank-bred brothers struck with bone-breaking force. Growling in rage, the Krogan released a deafening bellow of outrage as it summoned a biotic warp and threw it towards Revan.

Shepard had never seen anyone move as quickly as he saw Revan move in that instant. Even a Vanguard using a biotic charge couldn't hold a candle to the sheer speed with which Revan moved. One moment the man was standing in the target zone of a deadly biotic attack and the next he was driving his lightsaber into the biotic barrier of the Krogan as they grappled violently with one another. The biotic barrier had actually stopped the motion of Revan's blade and Revan's Force-powers could not penetrate the Krogan's biotics even if he wasn't blinded by nausea and pain at the unleashing of the Krogan's abilities. A Mandalorian curse rose from Revan's lips as he lashed out violently ducking and twisting around the Krogan and striking in a violent and almost beautiful flurry of movement as his blade danced around the Krogan's barrier. The Krogan staggered under the exhaustion of his powers and the massive alien could not move fast enough to capture Revan in its deadly grasp. Losing his focus as a superheated blade finally penetrated his biotic barrier; the Krogan watched its hand remove itself from his body, barely having enough time to register the pain beyond the foreign sense of nausea that had assaulted him at his foe's approach before a quick upward strike from Revan's blade struck the tank-bred Krogan's brain.

Shepard had recovered enough from his surprise at the odd display of powers to shoulder his M-8 Avenger and unload on a group of Krogan on an adjacent walkway. Garrus had switched to his sniper rifle and was calmly picking off the Krogan as he used a crate to steady his rifle. The targets both were firing on staggered back and fell over the walkways when Revan lifted his left hand, flicking his wrist casually as he turned and proceeded on, not even bothering to watch the Krogan he caught by his invisible Force-grip and by thrown to their deaths with their brothers.

"Did I hear him right, Commander?"

Garrus finally asked as he pulled his gaze from the scope of his rifle and cast a wary glance towards the Blue Sun facility. Shepard nodded grimly, his lips pressing into a thin line as his blue eyes hardened. He'd seen enough of Revan's abilities before the mission to know the man could read other's minds at will. Revan had even said so himself and the Commander knew by the serious abruptness of the change in Revan that something involving Indoctrination and the Reapers was going on in this base.

"Lets move, Garrus. We haven't got much time before the Mercs figure out where we are then we'll be fighting full platoons instead of squads and fire teams."

The former C-Sec officer nodded, his mandibles shifting nervously as he surveyed the damage Revan left in his wake before pressing on with his rifle grasped firmly in his taloned hands. Shepard flanked Garrus immediately and both moved forward, side-by-side into the Blue Sun facility, the door having been ripped from the wall and cast aside like a torn and bent piece of scrap. Distant screams and gunfire could be heard and Shepard pushed past the voice of his old drill instructor telling him he was an idiot in his mind and sprinted on ahead, Garrus right by his side as they ran up a winding ramp, a security camera swiveling to follow the duo before the green light indicating an active signal flashed red before going dark.

"Commander, I am detecting a breakdown of base security. The cameras have gone dark."

EDI's artificial voice came from Shepard's omni-tool and the Commander jumped in surprise, ducking to cover as he finally gave in to the berating voice of his old instructor for the sake of his shot nerves. He'd caught a glimpse of what Revan was doing in the next room and after their confrontation down in the training ground shortly before he wasn't particularly interested in having his internal organs ripped from his body by an invisible hand as had happened to one unfortunate individual.

"Say again, EDI?"

Shepard asked, his eyes shifting to see Garrus crouching behind a crate and sighting a distant Blue Sun mercenary. The Turian's features hardened as he focused on his target, steadying his breathing before gently squeezing his trigger. The head of his target snapped back, the armored helmet of the Blue Sun mercenary snapping back as a hole appeared in the front. The round never penetrated the back of the armored helmet and Garrus glanced down at his ammo-block with the Turian equivalent of a frown before he replaced it with an armor-piercing mod. The action took only seconds and Garrus quickly rejoined the battle, his deadly skills at range making Revan's charge through the Blue Suns all the more easy for the former Jedi Knight.

"Miss Vael detected a shift in power in the base's automated defense network. It appears that someone shut down the security cameras from inside the base."

Shepard frowned thoughtfully, glancing around his cover to release a short burst from his assault rifle towards a Blue Sun that was cowering in his cover, but still trying to find a way out in the wake of Revan's violent assault.

"Guess we got a friend on the inside."

Revan's voice was toneless and completely even. Despite all of the running the man had been doing he wasn't even short of breath. Flinching slightly at the sudden sound of Revan's mechanically filtered voice, Shepard moved from his cover, advancing on the Blue Sun mercenary closest to him and spraying the area with assault rifle fire until his thermal clip overheated. Dropping the clip, Shepard allowed a small smirk as the mercenary rose at the sound of his weapon's overheat warning and fired a blast of concussive energy from the small attachment he'd added to his weapon. The concussive shot struck the man violently, sending him sprawling and Shepard replaced his thermal clip before lining up his weapon with the prone mercenary and squeezing off a short burst after the mercenary scrambled for his sidearm.

"Lets move, Garrus."

Shepard finally stated, a pensive expression crossing his features as he turned his gaze to where Revan had finally stopped his insanely suicidal advance to apparently have a conversation into his uniquely blue-tinged omni-tool. The nearly casual stance of the man as mass accelerated around streaked past him and sometimes through his cover caused Shepard to double-time it to the closest cover as he switched to his own sniper rifle and started returning fire to the Blue Suns beyond their position. An expansive section of the facility seemed to drop off into nothing and as a result both parties exchanged fire over two suspended catwalks, joined by a narrow walkway that continued upwards into the towering facility.

"I'm fine, Lia. Don't worry about what the sensors are telling you."

Shepard caught part of what Revan was saying into his omni-tool and spared a disbelieving glance with Garrus when the Turian caught the conversation as well.

"You stupid Bosh'tet. I told you I'd have to fabricate a new set of conductors to place in the armor before even trying to route those damned power cells of yours through the hardsuit. Its running too hot!"

Shepard noticed that Revan's left arm was locked up, a series of red lights within the armor telling the Commander even without the aid of his omni-tool that the suit's exoskeleton had overloaded. A set of heatsinks were visible sticking out of the back of Revan's armored suit and the former Jedi Knight was cursing in annoyance as he shifted his right arm to pull one loose. For a moment, Shepard wondered why the man didn't just use his strange powers until a biotic warp traveled overhead and he remembered the spar Revan and Shari'a had in the cargo bay as well as the adverse reaction both had to the other's respective abilities and powers.

"Now I know I should have tested this before-"Revan began calmly, stopping his defense when Lia's angry voice came back over the omni-tool's speaker.

"I _told_ you there was no way to compensate for the heat differential and you didn't listen! I don't care if the exoskeleton is your own design, you are also using the hardsuit's framework and it wasn't designed to deal with the output of power those power cells of yours give off! This is insulting, Revan! People will start to think I taught you this."

Revan's lips turned down into a frown beneath his mask as Shepard finally stopped shooting at the Blue Sun mercenaries after the last one fell. With the last Blue Sun, the biotic that had been holding Revan at bay, fell; the former Jedi Knight used the Force to quickly remove the heatsinks from his armor and replace them with a fresh batch he'd been carrying on a pouch on his belt.

"I had to try field testing the equipment, Lia. All of my calculations told me this would not happen."

Revan had the sneaking suspicion his earlier Force-lightning attack had accelerated the breakdown of his hardsuit's cooling system but it was still a bit humbling to realize he still didn't know everything about Element Zero-based technology. It was a good thing he had a Quarrian tech on hand, despite the utter embarrassment of the situation.

On the Normandy, Lia'Vael nar Ulnay was hunched over a console, her omni-tool glowing orange as she kept the channel open with Revan. Displayed before her visor was a small schematic of Revan's hardsuit and the modifications they'd both worked on. At least up until the point where she'd gone to get some rest. Revan had gone on to completely rebuild the power matrix and ignored her suggestion to use an Element Zero-based power core of a helium 3 microfusion reactor. It was as insulting to her as it was satisfying when Revan's hesitant voice had come over her omni-tool in the middle of an operation. If it hadn't been for the sound of weapons fire and profanity the likes of which she'd never heard in her life coming from the Blue Sun Mercenaries, she may have made Revan _sweat it out_ as the humans put it. Instead, she'd given in an accessed a remote link to Revan's hardsuit. The man was over-confident in his abilities and while he was brilliant in regards to his innovations, the hard mechanics of the eezo-technology he was trying to mix with his own was still beyond him. It had only been two and a half months since Revan had come to the Citadel galaxy and while he'd had a quarrian as his personal teacher, there had simply been too much to learn. Written languages foreign to his own even if he spoke the human's more widely used language he still could not read it. When she'd asked him how it was he knew English, Revan had simply told her it was a slave-language that had been genetically encoded into a majority of the species within his galaxy; Galactic Basic as he'd called it but it had no written form initially. Instead of Romanized lettering, Revan's people had developed a language from mathematical signs and the results were two vastly differing written forms of two nearly-identical languages.

"I think you've fused two of the servos together along your elbow joint and one near your shoulder... I think- there! I got the one on your shoulder unlocked. I might need a second on the next."

Revan could have used the Force to free up the locks in his hardsuit but it would irreparably damage the internal components and a complete rebuilding of the unit would be necessary if he were to _force_ the locked servos free. Lia had painstakingly mapped out a program on her omni-tool to allow her remote, though significantly limited access to his suit's functions and Revan was grateful in that moment that he'd silenced the paranoid voice in the back of his mind and trusted the girl to know her work. Being able to read her mind had given him enough reason to trust her and Revan had pushed past his paranoia and listened to the advice of his young companion.

Shepard scowled as the Blue Sun's local leader, Jedore; shouted over the loudspeakers. He'd been able to ignore the broadcasts in the wake of Revan's violence and abilities until this point and the lull in the fighting as the squad waited for Revan to get his suit's malfunction repaired was both welcome and unwelcome in the sense that it gave him a moment to analyze their situation but also gave his enemies time to prepare for them. Activating his omni-tool, Shepard checked the encrypted signal of their transport and debated ordering the other fire team in. Coming to a decision, Shepard nodded to himself and motioned Garrus to prepare to move out. The Turian nodded immediately to Shepard's signal and moved from his cover to scan for threats on the path before them.

"Revan, we can't wait around all day for you to fix that armor. I don't know what the Hell you just did here before that locked up but-"

Shepard quickly sent the silent signal through his omni-tool for Jacob's team from the shuttle to meet them in the base. Distantly he could hear the thrusters of the UT-47 Kodiak Drop Shuttle as it moved to hover beside Garrus' position on the catwalks. Jacob and Zaeed jumped from the back of the door, their pistol and assault rifle rising respectively to sweep the perimeter while Jack casually strolled from the transport, grinning cockily as she absently brushed her fingers over the deadly M-22 Eviscerator shotgun she'd acquired from the Normandy's armory.

"Told you I was coming with you, Shepard."

Shepard turned from Revan with a scowl, turning his gaze from one unstable squad mate to another.

"Just get ready, Jack. We've got damn near an entire Platoon to fight through."

Jack merely continued to smirk, a dangerous gleam in her eyes as she glanced around Shepard to see Revan trying to unlock his armor.

"Your new toys not working out how you wanted?"

Jack asked mockingly, her eyes narrowing as Revan ignored her, continuing to work his omni-tool awkwardly as the left-side elbow joint of his hardsuit was locked up."Hey! I fuckin asked you a question."

Revan stilled for a moment, his masked features turning from his omni-tool to Jack's angry face. The former Jedi Knight stared silently at Subject Zero, not saying a word before Shepard finally moved forward, shoving Jack lightly to get her attention and assert control of the situation. He didn't need the two powerhouses going at each other on such an exposed position.

"Stow it, Jack. We've got work to do. You take point, Zaeed'll cover you."

Scowling as she turned to glare at Shepard, Jack flicked her eyes back to see that Revan was once again absorbed in his omni-tool's readings and slapped Shepard's hand away from where it was hovering by her shoulder.

"Fuck off, Shepard. I'll go up front so I get first call. Didn't get enough of those bastard Blue Suns on Purgatory. These shit-heads'll have to do for now."

Sighing in relief when Jack backed off, Shepard caught the glare she threw at Revan before shaking off his irritation. Revan was surprisingly level-headed during the confrontation Jack was trying to start and while he was grateful, it didn't inspire any warm feelings in regards to the former Dark Lord of the Sith. Revan had mentally tortured a man before needlessly killing him in a brutal and callous matter that set off warning bells in the former N7 Commando's head. Watching as the squad advanced, Shepard turned back to Revan and finally voiced his concern over what had spurred on Revan's brief little rampage.

"What were you talking about before all this, something about Indoctrination?"

Revan cursed in impotent fury at his hardsuit, wondering why he even bothered wearing the damned thing before he pushed aside the embarrassment. He'd rushed his work and made a mistake. Throwing a fit about it wouldn't chance anything and probably do more damage than good.

"There was a security camera watching us. I couldn't tell before but whoever is on the other side watching us wasn't Okeer... or one of the Blue Suns. It was an Asari who seemed to know you. She kept thinking about Sovereign and Indoctrination but I couldn't get much more. She's several stories above us, out of my line of sight and her biotics are shifting chaotically."

It took Shepard a moment to recall the woman who fit into Revan's description. Rana Thanoptis, the neurospecialist that had been working on Virmire for Saren.

"Huh."

Shepard muttered, surprised the Asari had made it clear of the nuclear blast Kaiden had died making sure would happen. Shifting at the memory of his friend and the confrontation with both Saren and Sovereign on Virmire, Shepard spared a glance towards Revan before motioning his head towards the still hovering shuttle. Revan signed in irritation before nodding reluctantly and moving to board the transport. He'd chosen to go into combat with untested gear and it had caused a delay in the mission.

"Good luck, Shepard."

Revan stated neutrally, his eyes closing in irritation when the Commander jabbed a finger into his chest.

"This isn't over, Revan. When this mission is over we're going to have a long talk about what you did down here. I won't tip Cerberus off to what you have planned... but if you want my support beyond that you're going to have to earn it."

Even in the face of seeing his powers unleashed, Shepard still would not back down from Revan. For a moment, Revan looked on in surprise more than annoyance. Shepard would have made a fine Mandalorian, Revan thought absently before he nodded his compliance with the Commander. They had different methods and Revan wasn't too fond of taking orders but he was the guest on Shepard's vessel and as tempting as it would be to just crush the insolent man with his powers it would be counterproductive to his cause. Cerberus would not give him the information he needed on to Conduit if Shepard were to have an _accident_ and despite their clashing personalities, Revan felt a bit of respect for the Commander. In a way, John Shepard reminded Revan of Alec, long before his friend had given in to the Darkness and embraced Darth Malak. He hadn't had a choice in how Malak met his end, the Jedi's actions making it nearly impossible for him at the time but now, in the face of the Reapers and all of the convoluted mess that was Shepard's galaxy Revan felt he had a part to play beyond fighting a delaying action to an enemy like the True Sith.

Despite the unique form of their technology, the Citadel galaxy's tech was primitive in comparison to Revan's galaxy. The Citadel seemed to be the limit of their galaxy's ability to create super stations in space and it was a speck of dust compared to the Star Forge, let alone the ironically similarly-named Citadel station over the ruins of Telos or the dry-dock facilities of the Republic Fleet over Foerost. Revan's failure to combine his technology with the Citadel's was embarrassing and distracting. He could strip off the armor and go on in just his robes and a kinetic barrier generator but Revan didn't feel like adding more complications to his situation. He'd been over-eager for combat after spending so much time in the labs on the Normandy and the Seeker Swarmer and the vision he'd gained from the creature had only spurred on his reckless dive into the current situation he was now in. He'd been driven to distraction and it had cost him. Absently rubbing the bruise Shepard had left on the back of his neck; Revan undid the seals of his mask and set the helmet on the seat beside him, the action uncomfortable when using only one arm. Sparing a glance at the pilot of the shuttle, Revan glanced at his omni-tool's still active connection before flinching violently. He'd left his communication line open with Lia the entire time. A hesitant voice, her accent telling of her childhood on the Ulnay came over the omni-tool and Revan let out a long sigh, his mind playing off how this would go over with the Illusive Man if he'd had EDI monitoring their communications. It was a foolish mistake and one Revan knew he would pay for.

"What plan for Cerberus?"

The worry in Lia's voice, the brief shiver of fear was damning in that moment and Revan glared at the omni-tool. He was still learning the tech, even after all this time and he'd made an unforgivable amount of mistakes since the start of the mission. He could blame it on the biotic and eezo fields that distracted his mind and senses, manifesting as a phantom pain in his mind but pain was easily overcome when one had a strong enough will and drive and Revan's lip curled back into a sneer of disgust at himself. Oversight was a bitch and her name was Miranda Lawson.

On the Command Deck of the Normandy, Cerberus Operative Lawson stared at the glowing omni-tool on Lia's wrist and the conversation she'd overheard between the Commander and the near-human General. Something was going on that was likely outside of Cerberus' interests if it had Shepard's support. The Commander had made no effect to hide his distaste of his benefactors and Miranda absently rubbed her temple, wishing the Illusive Man had given her permission to fit Shepard with a neural control chip. She would have to report this to the Illusive Man of course, but not before gathering enough evidence to support the theory forming in her enhanced mind.

"I think your work can wait, Miss Vael."

Miranda stated in a cool tone, her pale blue eyes narrowing as she fixed them onto the young quarrian. Lia shifted nervously as she glanced down to her omni-tool, a voice in her head that sounded like Revan's asking her to remain calm while he performed some damage control.

"I kind of lied to you about helping Cerberus. These Reapers are a real threat, Lia. I had to give them something."

The sincerity in Revan's apologetic tone was a clear sign to Lia that he was lying. Revan would have delivered such news in a toneless relaying of information, not an apology. Luckily Miranda didn't seem to know Revan so well as she frowned slightly, the predatory gleam in her eyes shifting as they rolled in annoyance.

"Bloody dramatics."

Miranda sighed, mentally filing away the situation for later. She'd back off for now, but she was my no means finished with this situation. Lia was arguing loudly over the dangers of Cerberus over her omni-tool and refusing to help Revan, spouting off Quarrian curses and putting up a fairly convincing performance aside from one small detail. Lia's body language was relaxed. She'd made an effort to appear upset, but to Miranda's trained and enhanced eyes the motions lacked a certain trait that most Quarrian's body language entailed. It wasn't subtle enough, she supposed. Spotting a flash of bright blue eyes in her peripheral, Miranda quickly ceased her study of the young Quarrian and returned her attention to the displays before her. With the added firepower of Zaeed and the biotics of Jacob and Subject Zero, Shepard was making quick progress through the Blue Sun Base. That wasn't of much concern, but tipping off Revan's Asari companion to her suspicions would be. Someone as experience as an Asari Matron, let alone one that worked for two centuries as a C-Sec officer would see right through the situation as easily as she had.

Shari'a T'Nala watched the interplay between Lia, Revan and Miranda warily. She had her doubts as to Cerberus and while Revan had remained fairly neutral on his activities in regards to the human extremist group she knew that the man wasn't entirely human and would never be accepted by the more radical elements of Cerberus despite whatever technological wonders or horrors he could bring. It was for that reason that she'd been privy by proxy to Revan's plan. They hadn't discussed it but both knew the relationship with Cerberus was strictly for access to the Conduit and the sensor readings and while Revan had some interests in Shepard's overall mission, Revan's own problems were of more concern than whatever fate awaited the Citadel Galaxy.

Skeptical as she'd been of the Reapers when she'd first heard of them, Shari'a was beginning to believe it was possible with how submissive Revan was becoming to Shepard's orders. She'd seen the recordings of the man's mask and knew it bowed to no one after leaving the Jedi Order. Something did not add up and with a small frown on her pale blue lips, Shari'a spared a concerned glance for the young Quarrian caught in the middle of what was likely going to become a shooting war between Revan and Cerberus.

"_Goddess let me be wrong."_

Shari'a pleaded, knowing through the recordings on Revan's mask the lengths at which the man would go or be pushed to accomplish his goals. Liara T'Soni's words to her on Illium weeks before came back and the Asari Matron shivered slightly despite the well-regulated temperature of the Normandy's Command Deck.

"_He would burn a thousand worlds to reach his goal… Goddess only knows what it is, but he- he can't be trusted."_

Shari'a hadn't tried to mentally bond with the Force-signature of Revan's mask like the reckless Asari Maiden turned Information Broker had, but she could almost sense the malice burning beneath Revan's dark eyes. She respected Revan, knew that most of his decisions were necessary and often times the only means to guarantee survival or success... but that did not mean she agreed with him.

"_I must speak to him in private when he returns... but where would we find privacy on this vessel?"_

EDI had eyes everywhere and if the information Lia had sent her when they'd both arrived was any indication, so did the Illusive Man. Resigning herself to the tedious wait, Shari'a briefly toyed with the thought of mentally bonding with Revan to share her concerns before dismissing it. Things had not become that desperate and the process was far too intimate for two strangers to engage in when a simpler solution would be to just wait until they were both off world and separated from the Cerberus crew.

"_Hopefully Lawson won't find anything truly damning of Revan."_

AN: Yes I did not forget about Shari'a or Lia. They'll play important roles later on. Also, Revan is a bit arrogant in his capabilities and that arrogance as well as a bit of oversight just bit him in the ass. Hope you enjoyed.


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